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Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1887,  by  the 

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CONTENTS. 


PAOB 

The  Court  of  Appeals   declares   the   land  "appropriated,"  ••con- 
demned," "  taksn" 15 

The  Newport  of  the  Toilers 16 

What  the  highest  tribunals  in  the  State  say  of  Pelham  Bay  Park 20 

A  contrast  between  the  Central  and  the  new  parks — Misapprehensions 

and  misstatements  corrected 21 

Financial  objections  answered 22 

Parks  a  profitable  investment — Boston's  experience ^ 26 

Testimony  from  other  cities 27 

Further  testimony  as  to  the  effect  of  parks  on  real  estate  values 28 

A  shrewd  scheme  to  get  the  advantage  of  the  city 31 

Why  the  work  of  appraisement  should  be  vigorously  prosecuted 32 

Some  telling  facts  from  the  history  of  Central  Park 33 

The  Sinking  Fund  and  the  city  debt 34 

The  New  York  of  the  future 37 

The  remedy  for  a  great  evil 38 

The  tenement  house  problem 41 

New  York's  packed  population , . .  42 

The  rapid  transit  question 43 

Access  to  the  new  parks 44 

The  parade  ground  and  popular  recreations 47 

A  permanent  industrial  exhibition 48 

A  diversified  park  system— Area  of  parks  and  parkways 49 

Van  Cortlandt  Park,  parade  ground  and  rifle  range 50 

Generous  provision  for  our  National  Guard 53 

Revolutionary  reminiscences — The  ancient  mansion  and  mill 54 

Sylvan  scenery — A  pirk  contrast,  New  York  and  Paris 57 

Memories  of  the  past 58 

Van  Cortlandt  vestas 59 

A  voice  from  Fairmount 60 

Rare  sylvan  beauties 63 

An  iceberg's  gift— The  artists'  haunt 64 

That  British  fleet— A  school  of  botany 65 

An  important  question •> 68 

The  right  thing  in  the  right  place 69 

Boundaries  of  Bronx  Park 70 

New  York's  great  sea-side  resort 73 

Pelham  Bay  Park • 74 


-vi  CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

Objections  answered — A  rare  acquisition 77 

Popular  recreations 78 

A  grand  site  for  a  zoological  garden 79 

A  retrospect 80 

A  profitable  real  estate  operation , 83 

Pelham  Neck  and  Hunter's  Island 84 

The  battle  of  the  Neck 87 

A  naval  prize— Mistress  Anne 88 

Park  revenues — A  site  for  an  observatory 91 

The  boundaries — Furnished  and  unfurnished  parks 93 

Croton  Park 95 

St.  Mary's  Park 97 

Claremont  Park 98 

The  Parkways 101 

The  Mosholu  Parkway 103 

The  Bronx  and  Pelham  Parkways— The  Crotona  Parkway 105 


HISTORY  OF  THE  MOVEMEA^T  FOR  NEW  PARKS. 

Its  friends  and  foes— The  contest  in  the  Legislature  and  before  the 

courts lOT 

Suitable  sites 108 

The  New  York  Park  Association Ill 

Preliminary  work 113 

A  worthless  resolution — Appointment  of  the  New  Parks  Commission.  115 

The  report — Public  meetings 116 

The  anti-parks  war — The  press  for  the  parks 117 

Now  is  the  time US' 

The  Commission  endorsed — Support  of  solid  men 131 

The  contest  in  the  Legislature 133 

The  friends  of  the  parks— Hon.  L,  R.  Marsh 183 

Hon.  W.  W.  Niles— Hon.  John  E.  Develin— Hon.  W.  Hutchins 124 

Hon.  O.  B.  Potter— CoL  R.  M.  Gallaway 137 

An  im  just  charge  repelled 138 

Only  natural  park  lands  selected 131 

Strong  friends  of  the  movement 133 

Other  friends — The  work  performed 133 

A  host  of  allies 134 

Legislative  champions  and  advocates 137 

An  overwhelming  majority — The  bill  becomes  a  law 138 

Renewal  of  the  contest — Decision  of  the  Court  of  Appeals 139 

The  Commissioners  of  Appraisal 140 

A  financial  stumbling  block 143 

Hostile  attitude  of  Mayor  Grace 144 

The  second  mayoralty  war  against  the  parks 145 


CONTENTS.  vii 

PAGE 

A  scheme  to  nullify  theact  of  1884 146 

Mr.  Grace's  ' '  mass  meeting  "  declared  ' '  a  dead  failure  " 149 

His  purpose  exposed— The  opposition  again  defeated 150 

Insidious  attempt  to  involve  the  Real  Estate  Exchange 151 

An  adroit,  but  an  unsuccessful  scheme 152 

The  contest  in  the  Board  of  Aldermen 155 

An  eloquent  protest 156 

An  attack  from  a  new  quarter 159 

Final  repulse  and  end  of  the  war 160 

Important  correspondence 162 

Emphatic  endorsement  by  prominent  citizens 164 

Petition  to  the  Legislature  and  the  Governor  in  favor  of  the  New 

Parks,  and  asking  that  the  Bill  be  passed  and  signed 171 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


Map  Showing  the  Location  of  the  New  Parks. 

PAGB 

Vah  COBTiiANDT  Park— Van    Cortlandt   Mansion  —  Washington's 

Headquarters  in  1781  and  1783 Frontispiece 

Parade  Ground 14 

View  of  Palisades  from  Vault  Hill 17 

Northern  end  of  the  Lake 2S 

Old  Mill  of  the  Revolution  and  Ancient 

Elms 29^ 

Thb  Bronx  Park—  On  the  Heights  above  the  River 3& 

TheCascade 39 

Sylvan  Point 45 

Delancey 's  Ancient  Pine 51 

The  Woodland  Mirror 55 

The  Trout  Pool 61 

The  River  Glade 65 

Inthe  Woods 71 

The  Lorillard  Mansion 75 

Si.  Mart's  Park— Northeast  view ..  81 

Southeast  view 85 

Northwest  view 89 

East  view 93 

Crotona  Park— Entrance  to  Park— North  view 99 

Entrance  to  Park — South  view 103 

The  Grove 109 

The  Dell 113 

Pblham  Bay  Park— From  Pelham  Bridge,  looking  southerly 119 

From  Prospect  Hill,  looking  westward 125 

From  Hunter's  Island,  looking  south 129 

Prom  Bartow's,  looking  south 135 

From  Hunter's  Island,  looking  easterly 141 

East  Chester  Bay,  south  of  Pelham  Bridge 147 

View  of  Upland 153 

Picnic  Point 157 


INTRODUCTION. 


The  author  of  the  following  pages  has  presented,  in  a  compact  form,  a 
comprehensive  history  of  the  movement  which,  initiated  in  1881,  resulted 
in  the  enactment  of  a  law  that  has  added  3,840  acres  to  the  park  area  of 
the  city.  Although  the  bill  creating  six  new  parks  and  three  parkways 
was  passed  by  the  Legislature  of  1884,  the  €  fforts  by  which  the  opponents 
of  the  measure  sought  to  defeat  its  enactment  have  been  carried  on  with 
more  or  less  obstinacy  ever  since.  In  fact  the  experience  of  the  men  to 
whom  the  city  is  indebted  for  the  existence  of  Central  Park  has  been 
repeated  in  the  present  instance. 

Having  failed,  after  a  bitter  and  protracted  struggle,  marked  by  most 
adroit  tactics,  to  defeat  the  bill  during  the  session  of  J  884,  in  which  it  passed 
by  a  vote  of  twenty-one  to  two  in  the  Senate  and  of  seventy-four  to 
twenty-one  in  the  Assembly,  its  enemies  renewed  the  contest  before  the 
Governor.  At  the  end  of  the  thirty  days  allowed  for  Executive  considera- 
tion, however,  he  resolved  to  give  it  his  approval,  and,  affixing  his  signature 
thereto,  it  became  a  law  on  the  14th  of  June,  1884. 

It  might  reasonably  be  supposed  that  the  fisrce  and  prolonged  assaults  on 
the  New  Parks  Act  would  have  ceased  after  the  passage  of  the  biU,  which 
was  fully  discussed  before  tha  Cities'  Committees  of  the  Senate  and 
Assembly,  in  both  branches  of  the  Legislature  and  before  the  Governor; 
but  the  attacks  were  kept  up  with  unabated  virulence  and  pertinacity  even 
after  the  decisions  of  the  Supreme  Court  and  the  Court  of  Appaals  on  the 
constitutionality  of  the  law,  and  the  reversal  flaally  by  the  last  tribunal  of 
the  decision  of  the  Special  and  General  Terms  of  the  Court  of  Common 
Pleas  on  the  Sinking  Fund  question.  Nay,  so  far  was  this  spirit  of  rancor- 
ous opposition  carried  that  one  of  the  most  conspicuous  in  the  unrelenting 
and  at  times  unscrupulous  warfare  against  the  parks  defiantly  said  that  he 
would  so  "tie  them  up"  in  litigation  that  the  city  would  not  be  able  to 
obtain  possession  of  them  for  years  to  come— if  ever. 

It  mattered  not  to  the  enemies  of  the  parks  that  the  nxovement  recei  ved 
the  indorsement  and  in  many  cases  the  active  support  of  a  large  number 
of  public-spirited  citizens,  extracts  from  whose  letters  will  be  found  in 
another  part  of  this  volume  ;  that  it  had  the  approval  of  a  great  part  of 


X  INTRODUCTION. 

the  city  press  ;  that  the  bill  was  not  only  passed  by  the  Legislature  of  188i, 
but  that  the  Legislatures  of  1885  and  1886  rejected  the  proposition  to  repeal 
the  law  ;  that  the  insidious  attempt  to  place  the  Real  Estate  Exchange  in 
opposition  to  the  measure  had  signally  failed — all  this  had  no  weight  with 
the  opposition  ;  they  had  resolved  at  all  hazards  to  have  the  act  repealed, 
QVen  though  it  subjected  the  city  to  the  intolerable  burden  of  vexatious, 
expensive  and  endless  litigation.  And  so  the  war  has  been  kept  up  to  the 
present  moment  in  defiance  of  two  decisions  of  the  highest  tribunals  in 
the  State. 

However,  it  is  now  fair  to  presume,  after  six  years  of  public,  legislative 
and  legal  controversy  ;  after  the  Court  of  Appeals  has  declared  that  "  the 

STATUte  ITSELF  CONDEMNS  AND  APPROPRIATES  FOR  PUBLIC  USE  THE  PRECISE 
LANDS  SELECTED  BY  METES  AND  BOUNDS  SO  THAT  EVERY  OWNER  AFFECTED 
HAD    MEANS   OF  KNOWING    THAT    HIS    LAND  WAS    TAKEN,"     that  We    have 

reached  the  end  of  the  fight,  and  that  the  work  of  the  three  citizens  com- 
posing the  Commission  of  Appraisal,  whose  characters  are  above  reproach 
and  whose  ability  has  not  been  called  in  question,  will  be  allowed  to  prose- 
cute their  work  to  the  end  without  further  embarrassment  or  inter- 
ruption. 

The  intimate  personal  connection  of  the  author  with  the  movement,  from 
its  inception  to  the  present  moment,  enables  him  to  give  from  the  minute 
data  in  his  possession  all  the  details  herein  set  forth,  and  for  the  accuracy 
and  correctness  of  which  he  holds  himself  responsible.  It  is  this  thorough 
knowledge,  not  only  of  the  facts  and  circumstances,  but  of  the  true  pur- 
poses of  the  movement  and  of  the  motives  by  which  it  was  inspired,  that 
justifies  him  in  saying  that  it  was  conceived  in  an  earnest,  sincere,  honest 
and  unselfish  desire  to  promote  the  sanitary  welfare  of  the  people,  to  secure 
to  them  opportunities  for  physical  recreation  and  out-door  exercise,  and  to 
add  to  the  prosperity  and  embellishment  of  our  imperial  metropolis,  des- 
tined within  the  next  half  century  to  be  first  among  the  cities  of  the  world 
in  population  and  wealth,  first  in  culture,  magnificence  and  power. 

Not  only  was  this  movement  begun  and  carried  on  in  a  spirit  of  generous 
devotion  to  the  one  great  purpose,  and  with  unflagging  energy  all  through 
the  varying  fortunes  of  the  struggle,  but  it  was  also  prosecuted  at  great 
sacrifice  of  time  and  labor,  and  with  a  total  disregard  of  all  personal 
interests  or  selfish  considerations.  This  much  the  author  cannot  refrain 
from  saying,  injustice  to  all,  who,  having  no  personal  interest  at  stake,  took 
pare  in  the  movement,  and  aided  it  by  vote,  or  voice,  or  pen.  But  the  cause 
of  the  new  parks  is  in  a  special  degree  indebted  for  its  success  to  the  generous 
eni  sustained  encouragement  which  its  promoters  and  advocates  received 
from  the  New  York  Press,  which  of  all  its  promoters  and  advocates  was 
throughout  among  the  mcst  earnest  and  steadfast. 

Those  who  imagine  that  the  extension  of  the  park  area  of  cur  metropolis 
at  the  present  time  is  premature,  should  consider  its  rapid  growth  and 
future  destiny.  There  are  to-day  within  our  municipal  limits  at  least 
seventeen  hundred  thousand  souls.  The  increase,  therefore,  since  the 
census  of  1881)  has  been  half  a  million,  and,  at  this  rate,  our  population  at 
the  beginning  of  the  twentieth  century  will  be  over  three  millions.     This 


INTRODUCTION.  xi 

rate  of  increase  would  give  at  least  six  millions  in  1917,  or  nearly  two 
millions  more  than  there  are  in  the  British  metropolis. 

Nor  should  this  be  a  matter  for  surprise  when  we  consider  the  progress  and 
growth  of  the  whole  country  which  more  than  trebles  its  population  every 
forty  years.  Thus,  while  in  1800  the  number  was  5,308,483;  in  1840 
it  was  17,060,453;  in  1810  id  was  7,239,881  and  in  18:0  23,191,876;  in  1830  it 
was  9,633,822  and  in  1860  31,443,321;  in  1830  it  was  12,866,020  and  in  1870 
38,558,371 ;  in  1840  it  was  17,069,453  and  in  1880  50,155,783.  Within  the  last 
forty  years,  although  we  have  passed  through  a  great  civil  war,  this  three- 
fold increase  was  almost  wholly  maintained.  To-day  our  population  is 
estimated  at  6j,0C0,000,  and  if  the  same  rate  is  kept  up  there  will  be  in  our 
Republic  nearly  two  hundred  millions  of  souls  in  the  year  1927. 

New  York  must  grow  with  the  growth,  must  keep  pace  with  the 
marvellous  development  of  the  whole  country.  Its  public  works  must  be 
carried  on  upon  a  scale  commensurate  with  the  progress  of  a  city  which  is 
destined  to  be  the  world's  capital,  a  city  to  which  a  continent  contributes 
of  its  abundant  wealth  and  resources.  That  a  marked  impulse  has  recently 
been  imparted  to  its  growth  is  evident  from  the  activity  in  building  opera- 
tions during  the  past  two  or  three  years.  The  concentrated  strength  of 
tens  of  thousands  of  laborers  is  working  through  the  inexhaustible  power 
of  the  steam-drill,  levelling  the  hills,  piercing  the  rocks,  preparing  the  way 
for  the  potent  power  of  dynamite;  both  doing  their  share  in  the  beneficent 
work  of  clearing  the  ground  for  human  habitations. 

And  what  may  not  the  prolific  future  have  in  store  for  us  ?  When  new 
forces  and  new  powers  will  be  discovered  in  nature  and  new  factors  and 
appliances  to  develop  and  utilize  them  invented  by  man — for  it  is  not  to  be 
presumed  that  this  generation  has  wrested  all  her  secrets  from  the  one  and 
exhausted  all  the  intellectual  activity  of  the  other — then  New  York  may 
see  marvellous  scientific  revelations  in  her  workshops  and  her  factories; 
wonders  of  art  in  her  museums  and  her  homes ;  creations  of  beauty  in 
ecclesiastical  architecture  that  may  equal,  if  they  do  not  surpass,  the  famed 
basilicas  and  cathedrals  of  the  Old  World.  By  that  time  the  steam  engine 
will  in  all  probability  be  a  thing  of  the  past,  with  all  its  din  and  rattle  and 
sulphurous  gases,  and  its  place  will  be  taken  by  the  noiseless  and  safer,  but 
not  less  rapid,  electric  motor.  What  has  been  already  accomplished  enlarges 
the  field  of  future  possibilities. 

In  less  than  two  decades  the  East  River  has  been  spanned  by  the  grandest 
and  most  graceful  structure  of  its  kind  in  the  world,  the  elevated  roads 
with  a  carrying  capacity  of  three  quarters  of  a  million  daily  have  been 
constructad ;  the  gigantic  Statue  of  Liberty  holding  in  her  hand  the  torch  of 
the  imprisoned  lightning  has  been  upraised  over  the  waters  of  our  glorious 
harbor ;  our  charities,  our  libraries,  our  museums  and  our  institutions  of 
learning  have  been  multiplied  beyond  all  precedent. 

For  the  New  York  of  the  future,  for  the  great  metropolis  as  it  is  to  be, 
the  new  parks  may  well  be  regarded  as  inadequate,  and  it  would  seem  to  be 
the  part  of  a  wise  economy  even  now  to  make  such  provision  for  the  still 
further  enlargement  of  the  area  of  our  public  grounds  as  will  save  the 
expenditure  of  millions  hereafter.    It  is  no  exaggeration  to  say  that  even 


xii  INTRODUCTION. 

with  the  supposed  generous  appropriation  of  space  secured  by  the 
provisions  of  the  act  of  1884,  the  present  park  area  will  be  as  insufficient 
to  meet  the  demands  of  three  millions  of  inhabitants  at  the  close  of  the 
century  as  the  Central  Park  has  proved  to  supply  the  present  wants  of 
seventeen  hundred  thousand  inhabitants. 

In  this  view  of  the  case  we  can  appreciate  the  extent  of  the  damage  that 
would  have  been  inflicted  on  the  city  had  the  attempt  to  eliminate 
Pelham  Bay  Park,  so  correctly  called  the  "  Newport  of  the  Toilers,"  been 
successful.  Fortunately,  however,  two  successive  Legislatures  and  the 
Court  of  Appeals  prevented  the  perpetration  of  that  design,  and  this 
Court  has  put  the  seal  of  inviolability  upon  the  act  by  declaring,  as  has 
bean  stated,  that  "  it  condemns  and  appropriates  for  public  use  the  precise 
lands  selected  by  metes  and  bounds. " 

Whatever  apathy  or  indifference  may  have  heretofore  prevailed  on  this 
important  question  it  is  now  reasonable  to  suppose  that  the  success  of  the 
movement  to  increase  the  park  area  of  the  city,  as  described  in  these  pages, 
will  render  it  easy  to  enlist  the  public  interest  and  support  in  behalf  of  like 
efforts  hereafter.  This  is  a  great  gain,  for  it  will  act  as  a  much  needed  stimu- 
lant in  the  prosecution  of  the  work  that  still  remains  to  be  done  in  this 
direction. 


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NEW  YORK'S  GRAND  PARK  DOMAIK 


THE   SCENERY   DESCRIBED   AND 
ILLUSTRATED. 


The  Sanitary  and  Financial  Question  Discussed. 


THE  COURT  OF  APPEALS  DECLARES  THE  LAND  "APPROPRIATED,"  "CON- 
DEMNED," "taken." 

Although  the  question  of  the  New  Parks  has  now  been  before  the  public 
over  six  years,  there  has  thus  far  been  no  consecutive  narrative  of  the 
movement  by  which  the  great  system  of  pleasure  grounds  beyond  the  Har- 
lem has  been  secured  for  the  people.  The  earnest  interest  manifested  in  its 
progress  during  the  long  contest,  which,  in  view  of  the  final  decision  of  the 
highest  tribunal  of  the  State,  must  now  be  regarded  as  at  an  end.  justifies 
the  publicaticn  at  this  particular  time  of  a  connfcted  account  of  the  move, 
ment  from  its  inception,  with  a  more  detailed  description  of  the  new  parks 
than  has  yet  appeared  in  print. 

It  is  now  evident  that  whatevor  expectations  our  opponents  may  have 
entertained  of  the  success  of  the  anti-parks  war,  they  have  been  effectually  dis- 
pelled by  the  many  signal  defeats  which  they  sustained  both  in  the  Legisla- 
ture and  before  the  courts.  The  struggle,  therefore,  is  virtually  over  and 
the  erroneous  impressions  which,  even  up  to  a  very  recent  date,  had  existed 
as  to  the  effect  of  the  deciiion  of  the  Court  of  Appeals  and  the  present  status 
of  the  parks  have  at  last  been  removed.  That  court  to  which  the  question 
of  the  constitutionality  of  the  law  was  carried,  after  a  tavorable  decision 
by  the  General  Term  of  the  Supreme  Court,  declared,  as  will  be  seen  from 
the  special  reference  to  the  subj  ct  in  another  part  of  this  volume,  that 
"the  statute  its-elf  condemns  and  appropriates  for  the  public  use  the  precise 
lands  salccted  by  metes  and  bound.-=,  so  that  every  owner  had  means  of 
knowing  that  his  land  ivas  taken.'" 

The  opponents  of  tho  measure  insisted  that  the  movement  was  pre- 
mature, but  the  rapid  growth  of  the  city  since  the  first  meeting  of 
the  promoters  and  friends  of  the  parks,  which  was  held  in  the  Fifth 
Avenue  Hotel  on  the  11th  of  November,  1881,  proves  that  it  was  not 
commenced  a  day  too  soon.  Up  to  that  year  there  had  been,  in  this 
important  matter  of   public  parks,   a  strange   indifference  not  only  to 


16  THE  NEW  PARKS. 

the  future  wants,  but  even  to  the  present  needs  of  our  population.  We 
have  been  far  behind  not  only  the  great  cities  of  Europe,  but  the  principal 
cities  of  the  United  States  as  to  park  area.  Had  the  wise  and  generous 
policy  of  De  Witt  Clinton  prevailed  when,  in  1807,  he  mapped  out  a  plan 
of  parks  for  the  Island  of  Manhattan,  there  would  be  little  if  any  necessity 
for  the  creation  of  small  parks,  so  greatly  needed  in  the  densely  crowded 
districts.  If  New  York  could  be  constructed  anew,  at  least  one-sixth  of  its 
S~y  surface  might  be  appropriated  for  squares  and  parks  with  marked  advan- 

tage not  only  to  its  health,  but  to  its  attractiveness  and  embellishment. 

The  park  area  which  Governor  Cliaton  laid  out  when  the  population  of 
New  York  was  less  than  100,000  gave  a  proportion  of  one  acre  to  every  160 
inhabitants.  The  aggregate  was  about  500  acres  in  addition  to  those 
already  established,  and  the  total  pirk  area,  south  of  40th  street,  was 
nearly  400  acres.  Of  one  park,  the  largest,  which  contained  over  200 
acres,  and  which  extended  from  23d  to  31th  street,  and  from  3d  to  7th 
avenue,  nothing  is  left  but  the  6)4  acres  of  Madison  square;  while  of  the 
40J  acres,  shown  on  Clinton's  map  below  40th  street,  only  66  remain.  To 
purchase  the  balance  of  334,  which  have  been  lost  through  the  negligence 
or  indifference  of  the  authorities  of  the  city,  to  remove  the  buildings  and 
to  construct  the  parks,  would  now  involve  an  outlay  of  at  least  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  millions  of  dollars — probably  two  hundred  millions. 

De  Witt  Clinton's  parks  gave,  as  stated,  an  average  of  one  acre  to  every 
160  inhabitants.  Before  the  passage  of  the  act  of  1884  the  park  area  of  our 
city  was  in  the  proportion  of  one  acre  to  every  1,363  of  the  population, 
while  the  park  acreage  of  London  was  in  the  ratio  of  1  to  205;  of  Paris,  1 
to  13;  of  Vienna,  1  to  100;  of  Dublin,  1  to  183;  of  Chicago,  1  to  200;  of  St. 
Louis,  1  to  167;  of  Boston,  1  to  190;  and  of  San  Frantfisco,  1  to  211. 


THE  NEWPORT  OF  NEW  YORK'S  TOILERS. 

It  is  evident,  therefore,  as  intimated,  that  the  movement  to  increase  our 
park  area  was  not  commenced  a  day  too  soon,  and  that  a  wise  policy 
dictated  the  selection  of  a  park  with  an  extensive  frontage  on  the  Sound, 
which  if  not  secured  at  once  could  not  probably  be  obtained  twenty  or 
twenty-five  years  hence,  if  at  all,  for  ten  times  the  price  which  it  will  now 
cost  the  city.  This  park  embraces  the  most  desirable  portion  of  the  terri- 
tory on  Pelham  Bay,  including  Pelham  Neck  and  Hunter's  Island.  It  will 
i  be  the  favorite  suburban  resort  of  the  mass  of  our  population— the  toilers 
of  the  great  city;  it  will  be  their  Newport.  The  majority  of  our  fellow 
citizens,  happily,  is  not  made  up  of  the  very  rich  and  the  very  poor,  but  of 
the  industrial  classes,  who  are  fully  able  from  their  accumulated  earnings 
to  afford  many  a  day  (and  hereafter  they  are  to  have  a  half-holiday  every 
week)  for  healthful  recreation  and  social  pleasure  in  the  country.  Of  the 
tens  of  millionsof  dollars  in  the  savings  banks  of  New  York  the  greatest 
portionbelongsto  the  thrifty  and  provident  workers,  and  it  is  for  such 
that  Pelham  Bay  Park,  against  which  the  great  force  of  the  opposition  has 
been  directed,  is  specially  required.    It  is  really  one  of  the  most  important 


o 

o 


< 


THE  NEW  PARKS.  19 

of  the  whole  system  on  account  of  its  water  front,  and  its  importance  and 
value  justify  special  reference  to  the  advantages  which  it  pDssesses. 

As  the  seaside  park,  and  within  easy  reach  by  rail  and  boat  of  our  east 
side  population,  its  popularity  will  increase  year  by  year.  It  is  but  ten 
minutes  by  rail  from  the  Harlem  River  and  two  miles  nearer  than  Glen 
Island,  and  will  be  a  specially  attractive  point  for  all  the  trade  and  benevo- 
lent societies,  for  rowing  and  yachting  clubs,  for  swimming  matches,  for 
fishing  parties  ;  and  what  place  so  admirably  adapted  for  the  many  excur- 
sions which  are  organized  by  benevolent  societies  and  individuals  every 
summer,  and  through  which  tens  of  thousands  who  could  never  otherwise 
hope  to  spend  a  day  in  the  country  are  enabled  to  enjoy  that  pleasure  and 
breathe  the  pure  air  of  heaven? 

The  wealthy  and  generous  philanthropists  of  New  York  who  get  up 
summer  excursions  for  the  sick  and  poor  of  the  metropolis  could  find 
no  better  place  for  the  purpose  than  Pelham  Bay  Park.  A  sail  up  the 
Sound  would  be,  in  itself,  a  satisfying  pleasure  ;  but  how  that  pleasure 
would  be  intensified,  how  immeasurably  the  gain  in  health  of  mind  and 
body  would  be  increased  by  every  hour  spent  in  these  tranquilizing  scenes ! 
How  the  tired  muscles  would  relax,  the  unquiet  nerves  grow  calm,  the 
dimmed  eyes  brighten  and  the  plodding  step  become  elastic  under  the 
potent  spell  exercised  by  the  combined  influences  of  sea  and  land  and  sky 
possessed  by  this  park  in  perfection.  Space,  beauty  and  variety  !  Closed 
in  on  three  sides  by  "  water  walls,"  roofed  by  "  the  brave  o'erhanging 
firmament,"  how  could  such  a  spot  fail  to  bring  health  to  the  body  and 
peace  to  the  mind  ?  And  what  a  sanitarium  could  be  there  established  ! 
The  ever-moving  panorama  of  the  Bound,  with  its  fleets  of  steamers  and 
sailing  vessels,  yachts  and  fishing  boats  ;  the  happy  throngs  of  picnic 
parties,  the  games  of  athletic  clubs,  the  merry  shouts  of  romping  children, 
would  infuse  such  an  element  of  joyousness  into  the  surroundings  as  to 
make  simple  rest  in  itself  a  recreation.  No  more  desirable  or  suitable  spot 
could  be  selected  for  a  sanitarium.  But  we  should  not  look  to  the  effect  of 
the  parks  on  the  health  of  the  people  only  ;  we  should  not  overlook  the 
subtle  influence  they  will  exercise  on  the  manners,  the  morals,  the  imagina- 
tion, the  creative  genius  and  artistic  instincts  of  the  population— an  influ- 
ence not  less  real  because  intangible,  not  less  valuable  because  it  cannot  be 
reduced  to  dollars  and  cents.  Communion  with  nature  not  only  educates 
the  eye  and  refines  the  taste,  but  it  softens  the  manners  and  elevates  the 
moral  perceptions  ;  and,  thanks  to  the  size  of  the  most  important  parks  of 
the  system,  our  people  can  enjoy  that  communion  to  thq  fullest  extent 
undisturbed  by  city  sights  and  sounds — "  can  mingle  with  the  universe  and 
enjoy  the  charms  of  solitude  to  their  heart's  content." 

Let  us  by  all  means  have  small  parks.  We  cannot  have  too  many  of 
them ;  but  we  should  not  confine  the  denizens  of  our  tenement  districts 
exclusively  to  the  city  squares.  It  is  natural  that  they  should  long  to  get 
into  the  country,  away  from  the  dust  and  din  and  stifling  heats  of  their 
crowded  quarters  in  the  city,  away  out  of  sight  of  its  scorching  pavements 
and  the  noisome  odor  of  filthy  streets  and  reeking  gutters.  Surely  the 
great  metropolis  can  afford  to  give  to  its  hundreds  of  thousands  of  workers 


so  THE  NEW  PARKS. 

a  park  by  the  Sound,  where  they  can  drink  in  new  life  and  health  in  its 
refreshing,  invigorating  breezes. 

WHAT      THE      HIGHEST       TRIBUNALS      IN      THE        STATE      SAY      OF      PELHAM 

BAY  PARK. 

Within  three  years  that  part  of  Westchester  County  in  which  Pelham 
Bay  Park  is  located  will  be  annexed  to  New  York.  This  territory  was 
included  in  the  original  bill  of  annexation,  the  present  northern  line  having 
been  continued  from  the  Bronx  to  the  Sound,  which  is  the  proper  eastern 
limit  of  the  city;  but  as  objections  were  raised  at  the  time  the  bill  was 
introduced  in  the  Legislature  it  was  decided  to  compromise  by  making  the 
Bronx  the  boundary. 

By  embracing  this  tract  in  the  new  park  domain  prior  to  the  proposed 
extension  of  the  northern  line  to  the  Sound  the  city  has  saved  hundreds  of 
thousands  if  not  millions  of  dollars  on  the  purchase.  It  is  evident  that  the 
Supreme  Court  does  not  believe  its  acqaisitioa  is  either  premature  or 
undesirable.  Referring  to  the  objections  raised  by  the  opposition,  that 
tribunal,  in  its  decision  on  the  1st  of  December,  1884,  declaring  the  act 
constitutional,  said:  "  At  most  the  appropriation  of  this  land  is  but  a  short 
step  into  the  future,  and  as  it  must  soon  be  required  for  this  object,  if  it  is 
not  wholly  so  at  present,  the  time  for  obtaining  it  has  already  arrived. 
For  the  recreation  and  enjoyment  of  the  present  inhabitants  of  the  city  it 
will  be  advantageous,  for  those  who  are  soon  to  follow  them  it  will  be 
indispensable,  and  to  meet  the  present  and  prospective  ivants  of  the  city 
prudence  requires  that  the  property  should  noiv  be  obtained.''^  The  Court 
of  Appeals,  to  which  the  case  was  carried,  also  made  this  park  the  subject 
of  special  reference,  affirming  the  decision  of  the  Supreme  Court.  "  We 
must,"  said  the  highest  tribunal  in  the  State,  "assume  what  we  can  see  is 
at  least  possible  and  perhaps  probable  that  the  lands  over  the  border  are  so 
near,  so  convenient  of  access,  so  likely  to  be  overtaken  and  surrounded  by 
the  city's  growth,  so  desirable  for  the  health  and  recreation  of  the  citizens, 
and  so  cheaply  to  be  got  in  comparison  with  the  consequences  of  delay,  as 
to  indicate  a  primary  and  predominant  city  purpose  in  a  matter  itself 
within  the  ordinary  range  of  municipal  action." 

But  it  has  been  urged  that  the  expense  of  the  maintenance  of  Pelham 
Bay  Park  will  be  a  heavy  burden  on  the  taxpayers  of  the  city.  Why 
should  it  be  ?  If  six  or  seven  hundred  thousand  persons  visit  Glen  Island 
every  summer,  and  probably  over  thrice  that  number  go  to  other  resorts  in 
the  vicinity  of  New  York,  is  it  not  evident  that  a  large  revenue  would 
be  derived  by  the  city  from  the  letting  of  privileges,  the  granting  of  leases 
and  licenses  to  those  who  would  cater  in  a  multiplicity  of  ways  to  the  vast 
throng  of  pleasure-seekers  who  would  resort  to  the  great  park  by  the 
Sound  ?  Much  more  than  the  interest  on  the  bonds,  which  is  3  per  cent., 
would  be  derived  from  this  source.  There  is  no  better  paying  investment 
than  that  in  parks.  The  parks  of  London  and  Paris  are  among  their  chief 
attractions,  and  all  their  largest  pleasure  grounds  are  miles  beyond  the 
limits  of  those  cities.  The  Pairmount  of  Philadelphia,  which  contains  about 
2,700  acres,  is  eight  miles  in  length  and  over  two  in  width.    Before  the 


THE  NEW  PARKS.  21 

movement  to  increase  our  park  area  commenced  London  had  15,000 
acres  and  this  has  been  increased  to  22,000,  one  tract  alone,  the  great 
Epping  Forest,  having  an  extent  of  6,030  acres,  or  nearly  one-half  the  area 
of  Manhattan  Island.  Of  these  23,000  acres,  2,000  only  are  within  the  city 
limits.  How  is  it  with  Paris?  Of  its  172,000  acres,  less  than  500  are  within 
its  bomidaries. 

The  opposition  by  which  Pelham  Bay  Park  has  been  assaUed  is  but  a 
repetition  of  the  war  waged  against  Central  Park.  The  opponents  of  the 
Central  contended  that  the  expense  would  bankrupt  the  city,  that  it  would 
become  the  resort  of  thieves  and  vagabonds,  and  they  sent  delegation  after 
delegation  and  petition  on  petition,  remonstrance  on  remonstrance  to  the 
State  capital  protesting  against  the  passage  of  the  bill ;  but,  fortunately, 
they  did  not  succeed.  They  insisted  that  it  was  too  far  from  the  centre  of 
population  and  that  the  city  would  not  grow  up  to  it  in  half  a  century.  It 
is  now  about  thirty  years  since  the  land  was  acquired  and  to-day  it  is 
dwarfed  by  the  city's  marvelous  growth  and  in  a  faw  years  more  it  will 
be  divided  into  sections  by  the  streets  which  must  intersect  it  to  facilitate 
the  traffic  and  travel  east  and  west. 

A  CONTRAST  BETWEEN  THE  CENTRAL  AND  THE  NEW  PARKS. 

The  costly  experience  of  the  city  in  the  case  of  Central  Park  will  not  be 
repeated,  for,  with  the  exception  of  some  necessary  roads  and  walks, 
comparatively  little  work  will  be  needed  in  the  new  pleasure  grounds. 
When  Central  Park  was  acquired  it  was  one  of  the  most  uninviting  sections 
of  the  island,  and  a  considerable  portion  of  it  had  been  used  as  dumping 
grounds.  As  far  back  as  1860,  four  years  after  the  land  was  paid  for,  one 
of  the  daily  papers  said  '"  it  was  neither  a  park,  a  stone  yard,  nor  a  piece 
of  waste  land,  and  that  after  three  years  labor  and  an  expenditure 
of  millions  of  dollars  New  York  is  almost  as  parkless  as  ever."  It 
was  simply  a  space  for  a  park  and  th"  city  had  to  make  one  and  put  it 
there  at  a  cost  of  $20,000  an  acre,  in  addition  to  the  six  millions  six  hundred 
and  odd  thousands  paid  for  the  land.  The  woods  had  to  be  planted,  the 
large  tracts  of  marsh  filled  in,  roads  and  walks  constructed,  and  the 
so-called  lakes  made.  In  the  accomplishment  of  this  necessary  work 
fifteen  years  were  consumed  before  it  was  ready  for  use. 

All  of  the  new  parks  created  by  the  act  of  1834  are  not  only  required  for 
the  future,  but  for  the  present,  and  when  they  are  formally  declared  open 
they  will  be  thronged  by  tens  of  thousands  of  our  population  eager  to  enjoy 
that  pleasure  of  unrestricted  use  denied  them  in  our  beautiful,  picturesque, 
showy  and  artificial  Central,  which  has  never  been  in  the  true  sense  of  the 
term  the  people's  playground.  Too  far  from  the  city !  from  a  city  advanc- 
ing with  gigantic  strides  to  its  predestined  position,  to  the  first  place  among 
the  capitals  of  Christendom.  If  its  progress  during  the  last  half  century 
furnishes  a  fair  basis  on  which  to  estimate  its  future  growth,  then  within 
the  lifetime  of  many  who  are  still  in  their  teens  it  will  have  a  population  of 
seven  or  eight  millions. 

MISAPPREHENSIONS  AND   MISSTATEMENTS  CORRECTED. 

It  is  to  be  regretted  that  the  wo-k  <>f  the  C  jmmissioners  of  Appraisal 


22 


THE  NEW"  PARKS. 


should  be  retarded  by  the  persistent  efforts  to  repeal  the  law,  and  that  a 
measure  so  beneficent  in  its  character  should  have  been  attacked  with  such 
virulence  that  in  one  flagrant  instance  it  was  made  the  cause  of  a  malicious 
personal  persecution.  The  misapprehension,  in  many  cases  doubtless 
honestly  entertained  by  some  of  the  opponents  of  the  movement  as  to  its 
true  character  and  the  motives  of  its  promoters,  has  at  last,  happily  given 
way  to  a  proper  appreciation  of  the  project,  and  of  its  vast  importance  to 
the  sanitary  welfare  of  the  people,  independent  of  the  financial  gain  to  the 
city.  As  to  the  assertion  so  freely,  so  unjustly,  made  that  the  movement 
for  new  parks  was  a  land  speculation,  and  that  this  charge  was  especially 
true  of  Pelham  Bay  Park,  the  writer  knows  absolutely  whereof  he  speaks 
when  he  states  that  not  one  of  the  owners  of  that  park  knew  that  his  land 
was  included  in  the  area  first  indicated,  and  which  embraced  all 
that  was  finally  selected  in  the  location  of  that  magnificent 
pleasure  ground.  It  is  proper  also  to  say  right  here  that  the  most 
determined  opposition  to  the  selection  of  this  particular  park  was  made  by 
several  of  the  owners  of  property  within  its  limits,  that  these  property 
owners  got  up  and  forwarded  petitions  to  the  Legislature  against  the  pas- 
sage of  the  bill,  that  they  employed  counsel  who  appeared  before  the 
Legislative  Committee  and  Governor  Cleveland  and  used  every  effort  to 
defeat  its  enactment.  There  never  was  a  movement  of  the  kind  in  this  or 
any  other  city  so  wholly  free  from  speculation  of  any  description.  It  was 
conceived  in  the  best  and  purest  of  motives,  having  in  view  the  one  great 
object,  the  public  good. 

And  now  a  few  words  in  conclusion  as  to  the  financial  question.  On  that 
point  it  is  sufficient  at  present  to  say  that  the  city  will  have  this  splendid 
park  domain  entirely  free  of  cost ;  that,  as  in  the  case  of  the  Central, 
more  than  the  amount  of  the  bonds  and  the  3  per  cent,  interest  thereon 
will  be  paid  back  iato  the  city  treasury  from  the  increased  tax  income 
on  the  enhanced  value  of  the  surrounding  lands — yes,  more  than  enough  to 
pay  for  the  smaller  down-town  parks  which  are  to  be  created  under  the  act 
just  passed. 

If,  in  a  monarchical  country,  the  opening  of  "  The  People's  Palace," 
which  took  place  in  London  the  other  day,  was  made  the  occasion  of  a 
royal  pageant,  and  the  dedication  of  an  additional  park  area  of  7,000 
acres  a  few  years  ago  was  celebrated  by  the  civic  authorities  of 
that  city,  should  we  not  celebrate  with  appropriate  ceremonies  the 
opening  of  the  people's  parks  next  year  by  a  grand  municipal  holiday  ? 

FINANCIAL  OBJECTIONS  ANSWERED. 

One  of  the  principal  objections  to  the  new  parks  was  the  great  expense, 
which,  it  was  contended,  would  seriously  embarrass  the  city,  if  it  did  not 
actually  impair  its  credit.  It  was  urged  that  the  expenditure  of  millions 
for  this  purpose  would  put  a  stop  to  necessary  public  improvements;  that 
the  money  required  for  the  parks  was  needed  for  increased  school  accommo- 
dations ;  that  a  new  aqueduct  and  reservoir  should  be  commenced  immedi- 
ately, that  the  rapid  growth  and  extension  of  the  city  necessitated  the 
construction  of  miles  of  additional  streets  and  sewers ;  that  three  or  four 


< 


o 

o 

ri- 

3 
Q. 

-a 


m 

Q_ 
O 

.-4- 


THE  NEW  PARKS.  25 

millions  a  year  would  be  required  for  new  docks  and  armories,  not  to  speak 
of  the  pressing  necessity  for  a  new  municipal  building,  to  save  the  payment 
of  exorbitant  rents  for  city  offices. 

These  arguments  were  used  with  considerable  effect  both  in  this  city  and 
Albany,  but  the  evidence  as  to  the  direct  financial  gain  resulting  from  the 
creation  of  parks,  not  only  in  New  York,  but  elsewhere,  was  conclusive. 
The  friends  of  the  movement  were  fortified  by  the  overwhelming  testimony 
on  this  point  afforded  by  the  history  of  Central  Park.  It  was  shown  that, 
despite  the  enormous  <  utlay  necessary  to  put  it  in  condition  for  public  use, 
and  the  amount  expended  in  costly  embellishments,  the  city  had  a  balance 
of  S17,CO0,O0O  in  its  favor.  And  during  the  fifteen  years  required  for  its 
completion  there  was  no  cessation  of  other  public  works.  So  far  from 
retarding  necessary  improvements,  the  increased  revenue  resulting  from 
the  rapid  and  unprecedented  rise  in  the  value  of  real  estate  in  the  12th 
19th  and  23d  Wards  furnished  a  large  portion  of  the  means  from 
which  the  municipal  expenses  were  defrayed.  The  city  purchased 
the  land  at  the  lowest  figure  and  consequently  had  reaped  all  the 
advantage  of  a  rise  in  values.  The  first  tract  taken  under  the  act  of 
1853  cost  about  $7,800  an  acre,  and  the  second  tract,  extending  from  106th 
to  110th  street,  appropriated  six  years  after,  $30,030  an  acre.  Before  this 
extension  the  appraised  value  of  the  northern  section  was  about  $4,000  an 
acre.  Its  acquisition,  six  years  after,  cost  the  city  five  times  as  much, 
making  an  aggregate  of  $803,000,  which  would  have  been  saved  had  all  the 
land  within  the  park  been  acquired  under  the  act  of  1S53. 

Yet  this  marked  increase  dwindles  into  insignificance  compared  with  the 
prices  paid  for  property  fronting  on  the  park.  Comptroller  Hawes,  in  1858, 
two  years  after  the  city  acquired  title  to  the  land,  said  that  "the  increase 
in  the  amount  of  taxes  accruing  in  consequence  of  the  enhancement  of 
value  in  real  estate  situated  in  the  upper  part  of  the  island  over  and  above 
the  formal  value  of  the  land,  now  withdrawn  from  taxation  on  account  of 
the  opening  of  this  noble  park,  will,  it  is  thought,  afford  more  thau  suffi- 
cient means  for  the  payment  of  the  interest  on  the  debt  incurred  for  its 
purchase  and  improvement  without  any  increase  in  the  general  rate  of 
taxation. "  The  sanguine  predictions  of  Mr.  Hawes  were  more  than  realized, 
the  increased  taxes  not  only  paid  the  interest  on  the  bonds,  they  paid  both 
principal  and  interest,  and,  as  estimated,  seventeen  millions  of  dollars  over 
all  expenses. 

In  the  speculation  which  followed  the  enactment  of  the  law  in  IC-o, 
property  advanced  in  one  year  from  100  to  300  per  cent,  in  some  localities, 
and  ene  noted  instance  is  recorded  of  an  advance  in  a  single  plot  of  1,300 
per  cent,  within  five  yeais.  This  was  the  tract  bounded  by  5th  and 
Madison  avenues  and  78th  and  79th  streets,  which  in  1833  was  sold  for 
$3,CC0,  and  in  1857  for  $40,000.  Twelve  years  after  Mr.  Vanderbilt  offered 
$1,250,000  for  this  plot,  and  the  offer  was  refused.  It  may  be  said  that  this 
was  mere  speculation  and  the  value  was  wholly  prospective ;  but  whether 
speculative  or  prospective  the  city  had  the  benefit  in  the  basis  which  it 
afforded  for  increased  assessments.  Mr.  Hawes  evidently  believed  that  the 
city  was  entitled  to  its  share  of  th"  benefit,  and  he  assessed  it  accordingly 


26  THE  KEW  PARKS. 

in  proportion  to  the  advance.  Had  the  129  acres  which  make  up  the  area 
of  Riverside  and  Morningside  Parks  been  purchased  at  the  rate  paid  for 
those  in  the  Central,  those  ribbons  of  land  and  rocky  ledges,  less  than  one- 
half  the  area  of  which  is  available  for  park  purposes,  they  would  doubtless 
have  reimbursed  the  city  for  the  outlay.  But  these  strips  cost  $7,250,000, 
or  at  the  rate  of  $60,009  an  acre  1  Small  chance  there  for  a  return  on  the 
investment.  It  was  a  losing  transaction  from  the  start,  and  they  will  cost 
three  or  four  millions  more  before  they  are  fully  "  improved." 

PARKS   A  PROFITABLE  INVESTMENT— BOSTON'S  EXPERIENCE. 

The  area  of  the  new  parks  and  parkways  beyond  the  Harlem  is  3,800 
acres,  or  a  little  more  than  four  times  that  of  the  Central,  Riverside  and 
Morningside  combined,  and  requiring  no  outlay  further  than  may  be  nec- 
essary for  a  few  additional  roads,  they  will  cost  much  less  than  was  paid 
for  the  land  alone  within  those  parks.  Five  years  hence  they  will  be  worth 
more  than  double  the  price  to  be  paid  for  them  and  the  city  will  then 
possess  parks  worthy  of  the  name,  parks  fully  furnished  by  Nature  with 
every  element  of  beauty,  hills  and  streams  and  trees,  the  product  of 
centuries. 

As  to  the  ability  of  the  city  to  bear  the  additional  burden  imposed  by 
these  parks,  even  were  the  returns  inadequate  to  the  outlay,  a  few  facts 
will  satisfy  the  most  skeptical.  The  interest  on  the  Central  Park  bonds  at 
7  per  cent,  amounted  to  $466,200  a  year,  which  was  raised  on  taxable 
values  of  from  three  to  four  hundred  millions  of  dollars.  The  interest  on 
the  new  park  bonds,  fixed  by  the  act  of  1884  at  3  per  cent,  will  not 
amount  to  $300,000  a  year,  and  this  will  be  paid  from  the  tax  imposed  on 
an  aggregate  value  of  about  fifteen  hundred  millions,  which  will  be  mate- 
rially increased  by  the  influence  of  the  parks  themselves  in  the  enhancement 
of  the  surrounding  property.  Will  the  weight  imposed  by  this  burden  be 
more  intolerable  than  that  borne  by  the  city  thirty  years  ago,  when  it  was 
obliged  to  pay  almost  double  the  amount  of  interest  on  one-fifth  the  present- 
amount  of  real  and  personal  estate?  But  there  is  no  "burden"  and  the 
word  has  no  placo  in  this  connection  except  for  the  purposes  of  illustration. 

It  has  been  already  stated  that  the  experience  of  New  York  and  other 
cities  proved  that  parks,  financially  considered,  are  a  profitable  investment. 
Believing  that  like  causes  produced  like  results  the  writer  entered,  in  the 
early  stage  of  the  movement,  into  correspondence  with  the  Commissioners  of 
Parks  in  the  principal  cities  throughout  the  country  with  a  view  of  securing 
corroborative  evidence  on  this  important  point.  In  every  instance  the  im- 
mediate effect  was  a  marked  appreciation  of  real  estate  fronting  on  and  in 
the  immediate  vicinity  of  the  parks.  Mr.  W.  Harmon,  the  Secretary  of 
the  South  Park  Commission  of  Chicago,  wrote  that  "  the  immediate  effect 
of  their  location  was  to  double  and  quadruple  property."  The  report  for- 
warded from  the  Boston  Commission  stated  that  the  Back  Bay  Park,  which 
was  given  as  an  illustration,  "  is  not  a  tax  upon  the  city  at  large,  but  the 
increased  taxes  from  the  surrounding  property  pays  its  cost.  The  increase 
of  values  is  upon  land  alone,  and  does  not  include  the  buildings.  The 
valuation  of  the  land  in  the  rest  of  the  city  during  the  same  time,  1877  to 


THE  NEW  PARKS.  27 

1881,  tvas  reduced  $27,621,449."  This  report  possesses  peculiar  significance, 
for  it  proves  that  the  increased  value  of  the  property  around  the  park 
enabled  the  city  authorities  to  reduca  the  burden  on  the  rest  of  the  city. 
Within  the  comparatively  brief  period  of  four  years,  as  stated,  a  reduction 
of  $27,621,449  was  made  in  the  valuations  of  the  land  !  "  New  buildings," 
said  the  Commissioners,  "  have  been  erected  upon  this  territory,  which  are 
due  in  a  large  measure  to  the  influence  of  the  park  and  from  which  the 
city  derives  an  income  of  $55,492."  Iq  their  report  to  the  Mayor,  speaking 
of  the  financial  benefits  derived  from  the  increased  space  appropriated 
for  the  recreation  of  the  people,  they  remark  that  the  information  was 
"interesting  and  instructive,  not  only  to  the  owners  of  estates  adjacent  to 
the  improvement,  but  especially  to  citizens  at  large  who  may  very  natur- 
ally be  under  the  impression  that  their  property  is  being  additionally  taxed 
for  the  benefit  of  a  particular  section  of  their  city.  The  reverse  is  true. 
The  tax  rate  is  already  favorably  influenced  by  the  purchase  of  park  lands, 
and  in  the  opinion  of  the  undersign  d  will  so  continue  to  be  in  an  in- 
creasing ratio  in  succeeding  years."  What  is  true  of  Boston  is  no  less  true 
of  New  York.  The  enhancement  of  values  in  one  section  of  the  city  must 
be  to  the  advantage  of  the  whole,  and  this  will  be  found  to  be  also  true  not 
only  of  large  parks,  but  of  the  small  parks,  though  the  financial  gain 
cannot,  for  evident  reasons,  ba  as  large. 

TESTIMONY  FROM   OTHER  CITIES. 

From  Mr.  John  Y.  Cuyler,  the  Superincendent  and  Chief  Engineer  of 
the  Brooklyn  parks,  came  evidence  still  more  positive,  emphatic  and  con- 
vincing than  that  furnished  from  other  cities.  "As  a  result,"  said  that 
gentleman,  "a  careful  investigation  of  the  change  of  values  and  the 
higher  rate  of  taxation  disclosed  by  examination  of  the  Assessors  and  Tax 
ofiice  it  may  be  confidently  asserted  that  the  establishment  of  Prospect 
Park  and  the  smaller  parks  has  been  generally  beneficial  as  a  financial 
venture  on  the  part  of  the  municipality,  and  as  a  matter  of  fact  they 
impose  no  burden  on  the  taxpayer,  but  have  been  and  are  an  important 
factor  in  conti'ibuting  to  the  city  an  increased  revenue  which,  were  it 
separated  and  credited  to  a  sinking  fund,  would  at  the  present  time,  and  in 
some  instances  entirely  so,  go  a  long  way  towards  paying  off  the 
indebtedness  incurred  by  the  issue  of  bonds  for  the  original  purchase 
of  the  lands  and  their  improvements.'''' 

The  evidence  from  Baltimore,  Buffalo  and  other  points  was  as  direct  and 
confirmatory.  The  park  authorities  in  all  those  cities  concurred  on  the 
main  point  that  the  money  spent  for  and  on  parks  is  a  paying  investment. 
The  park  authorities  of  Brooklyn,  as  far  back  as  1S70,  speaking  of  the  rapid 
increase  in  the  population  of  that  city,  which  showed  a  higher  percentage 
than  New  York,  insisted  on  "  the  immense  importance  of  securing  parks 
and  open  planted  spaces  of  every  description  ii  advance  and  wherever  it 
may  be  practicable  as  lungs  for  the  p)opulation;  and,"  they  added, 
"  that  their  constant  aim  should  be  to  increase  the  valuation  of  their 
property  by  improving  their  streets  and  by  increased  park  accommo- 
dations." 


28  THE  NEW  PARKS. 

As  for  New  York,  they  predicted  that  in  the  race  between  tho  two  cities 
it  was  certain  to  be  left  behind,  ttniess— clear-sighted  BrooklynitesI— "it 
ihall  speedily  absorb  all  the  southern  towns  of  Westchester,"  an  event 
which  the  new  park  on  Pelham  Bay,  as  well  as  the  growth  of  the  city 
northward  and  eastward  beyond  the  Harlem  renders  inevitable.  By  annex- 
ation at  the  earliest  day  the  city  will  have  the  benefit  resulting  from  the 
increased  values  of  property  along  the  extended  line  fronting  the  eastern 
boundary  of  the  Bronx,  on  both  sides  of  the  great  parkway  and  on  Pelham 
Bay  Park,  the  extent  of  which  is  about  ten  miles,  making,  with  the  front- 
age of  the  new  pai'ks  west  of  the  Bronx,  an  aggregate  of  over  twenty 
miles. 

As  the  property  around  these  parks  will  more  than  pay  for  them  from  the 
ascending  tax  rates,  justice  to  the  owners  demands  that  they  should  have 
all  the  benefit  to  be  obtained  therefrom  with  as  little  delay  as  possible.  This 
is  not  only  due  to  the  parties  immediately  interested  but  to  the  whole  city, 
;^  for  these  parks  are  to  be  the  people's  playgrounds,  and  every  trade  associa- 
tion, every  benevolent  society,  every  athletic  club,  every  Sunday  school, 
every  military  organization — and  all  these  are  numbered  not  by  hun- 
dreds but  by  thousands — have  a  special  interest  in  their  transfer  to  the 
Park  Department  in  order  that  they  may  be  officially  thrown  open  to  the 
public.  That  transfer  once  made,  and  one  summer's  enjoyment  of  the  parks 
secured,  the  people  will  be  able  to  realize  the  extent  of  the  loss  the  city 
would  have  sustained  had  the  insidious  attempt  made  in  1885  to  repeal  the 
act  been  successful.  But  the  organized  movement  of  that  year,  which  cul- 
minated in  a  last  desperate  effort  at  Albany  of  the  enemies  of  the  parks,  and 
which  literally  bristled  with  threats  and  menaces  against  the  friends  of  the 
measure,  and  even  attacks  upon  character,  was  a  signal  failure,  the  Court 
of  Appeals  having  effectually  barred  the  way  and  the  Legislature  refusing 
to  undo  its  own  beneficent  work.  The  history  of  that  movement  which  is 
now  presented  in  these  pages  for  the  first  time  reveals  some  incidents,  which 
are  both  instructive  and  suggestive. 

rURTHER     TESTIMONY     AS     TO     THK     EFFECT    OP    PARKS    ON    REAL    ESTATE 

VALUES. 

Particular  reference  was  made  on  a  former  page  to  the  financial  benefits 
resulting  from  the  creation  of  parks,  and  evidence  was  presented  from  the 
officials  of  Chicago,  Brooklyn  and  other  cities  in  corroboration  of  our  own 
experience  on  this  point.  Such  evidence  was  deemed  of  the  first  import- 
ance, as  this  was  the  main  ground  on.  which  the  opposition  justified  its 
fierce,  active  and  at  times  unscrupulous  hostility  to  the  movement.  In 
every  instance  the  facts  obtained  from  reliable  sources  proved,  as  stated 
in  another  place,  that  "the  money  spent  for  and  on  parks  is  a  paying 
investment."  The  case  of  Baltimore,  to  which  only  a  brief  allusion  was 
made,  is  deserving  of  special  mention,  as  it  bears  particularly  on  the  objec- 
tion to  the  location  of  pleasure  grounds  beyond  the  city  limits. 

"  Druid  Hill  Park,"  said  Mr.  D.  Rayhice,  the  secretary  of  the  Baltimore 
Commission,  "purchased  in  1860,  is  not  within  the  city  limits,  but  is 
separated  from  it  by  some  three-eighths  of  a  mile,  which  was  formerly 


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m 


THE  NEW  PARKS.  SI 

without  a  dwelling  for  that  distance.  There  are  now  rows  of  handsome 
dwellings  lining  the  roads  leading  to  the  park.  The  cost  of  the  land  within 
the  parli  limits  was  SDme what  less  than  $1,000  an  acre.  The  surrounding 
property  is  now  held  at  rates  vastly  higher.  Before  the  park  was 
opened  the  Commission  gave  for  an  undivided  interest  |5C'0  an  acre. 
They  have  since  had  to  2^ciy  $i,000  and  more  than  that  ivhen  they  had 
to  condemn  land  ivithin  the  park.  Rough  hill  side  lots,  which  would 
scarcely  have  found  a  purchaser,  are  now  held  at  $3,000  in  the  expecta- 
tion that  the  Commission  will  have  to  pay  the  price  to  secure  the  prop- 
erty which  jits  into  the  park.  That  the  increased  value  is  very  great 
is  so  palpable  that  m  one  doubts.'''' 

But  still  more  convincing  evidence  than  that  furnished  by  the  history 
of  Central  Park  and  the  experience  of  Baltimore,  Chicago,  Brooklyn  and 
other  cities  has  been  revealed  by  an  adroit  attempt  to  secure  the  passage 
of  a  certain  bill  during  the  recent  session  of  the  Legislature.  The  real 
object  was  concealed  under  pretense  of  benefiting  the  city  and  of  making 
certain  indispensable  changes  in  the  new  parks  by  the  adjustment  of 
boundaries.  A  bill  was  drawn  up  by  parties  interested  in  the  scheme 
and  introduced  in  the  Senate,  on  the  20th  of  April,  giving  authority 
to  the  Department  of  Parks  "to  lay  out,  define,  locate  and  change  the 
exterior  boundaries  of  the  said  new  parks  named  in  the  saiJ  act  (1884)  and 
the  several  parkways;"  and  it  was  provided  that  "  in  making  the 
proposed  changes  the  Commissioners  aforesaid  shall  not  extend  the  area 
or  boundaries  of  parks  or  parkways,  but  may  diminish  the  same.''^ 

In  this  shrewdly  concocted  scheme  the  virus,  like  the  poison  of  the  wasp, 
lurked  in  the  tail.  The  bill  appeared  to  be  not  only  reasonable,  but  essen- 
tial to  the  correction  of  certain  alleged  defects  in  the  lines  of  the  parks, 
and  the  unsuspecting  offered  no  objection;  but  its  animus  was  detected  in 
time  and  it  was  buried  in  the  grave  with  the  blasted  hopes  of  its  projectors. 

A  SHREWD  SCHEME  TO   GET  THE  ADVANTAGE   OF  THE   CITY. 

And  now  as  to  the  real  object  of  the  bill:  In  the  proposed  adjustment  of 
lines  it  was  designed  to  take  out  certain  tracts  which  touched  the  bounda- 
ries, and  through  the  authority  conferred  by  the  bill  to  place  them  outside 
of  the  parks.  Ever  since  the  passage  of  the  act  of  1884  the  property 
fronting  on  or  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  the  parks  had  steadily  increased 
in  value  until,  in  some  instances,  the  advance  was  over  ICO  per  cent.  Aa  a 
matter  of  strict  justice  this  enhancement,  due  to  the  establishment  of  the 
parks,  should  be  credited  to  the  city,  and  any  attempt  to  deprive  the 
city  of  the  benefits  accruing  therefrom  should  be  vigilantly  guarded 
against.  The  expense  already  incurred  in  the  survey  of  the  lands,  the 
employment  of  real  estate  experts  on  the  matter  of  values,  the  heavy  out- 
lays necessitated  by  the  contests  before  the  courts  on  questions  raised  by 
the  opposition,  aU  these  constitute  substantial  and  valid  reasons  why  the 
city  should  hold  on  not  only  to  the  parks,  but  to  every  acre  and  every  foot 
of  land  which  the  Court  of  Appeals  has  decided  was  taken  by  the  act,  and 
that  it  should  have  and  enj  ly  all  the  fiaancial  benefits  resulting  from  its 
own  work. 


32  THE  KEW  PARKS, 

The  property  owners,  however,  saw  that  by  having  their  land  placed  by 
this  ingenious  device  outside  of  the  boundaries  they  would  reap  the  advan- 
tage of  the  improvement  and  secure  a  frontage  which  would  largely  increase 
the  value  of  their  property.  Of  course  their  gain  would  have  been  the 
city's  loss  for,  had  they  succeeded,  the  city  would  have  been  defrauded 
through  the  forms  of  law  of  large  tracts  which  had  acquired  higher  value 
by  their  appropriation  for  this  special  purpose. 

But  the  scheme  could  not  have  succeeded  even  if  the  bill  had  passed, 
unless  by  collusion  between  the  authorities  and  the  property  owners,  which, 
under  the  administration  of  the  present  Mayor,  would  never  have  been 
tolerated  if  brought  to  his  notice.  It  is  certain  that  had  the  bill  passed  the 
Legislature  the  promoters  and  friends  c  f  the  parks  would  have  made  known 
to  the  Governor  its  real  design,  and,  if  necessary,  they  would  finally 
appeal  to  that  Court  which  declared  that  "  the  statute  itself  condemns  and 
appropriates  for  the  public  use  the  jirecise  lands  selected  by  metes  and 
bounds,  so  that  every  owner  affected  had  means  of  knowing  that  his 
land  ivas  taken." 

The  scheme,  if  successful,  would  have  caused  still  further  delay  anu  post- 
poned, by  vexatious  and  costly  litigation,  the  day  when  the  people  could 
enter  into  full  possession  and  enjoyment  of  their  own  property.  But  the 
litigation  which  has  already  taken  tens  of  thousands  of  dollars  out  of  the 
city  treasury,  and  through  which  hundreds  of  thousands  of  our  fellow  citi- 
zens have  been  deprived  of  the  use  of  the  new  parka  for  more  than  a  year 
beyond  the  time  necessary  to  ascertain  the  value  of  the  various  tracts — this 
litigation  was  one  of  the  means  by  which  the  parks  were  to  be  so  "  tied  up," 
as  was  defiantly  threatened  by  an  active  and  prominent  opponent,  that  the 
people  could  not  enjoy  them  for  many  years,  if  ever. 

WHY  THE  WORK  OF  APPRAISEMENT   SHOULD  BE  VIGOROUSLY  PROSECUTED. 

It  was  an  audacious  and  an  empty  threat,  but  the  delay  that  has  already 
occurred  through  the  contests  in  the  .ourts  on  the  constitutionality  of  the 
law  and  in  determining  the  sinking  fund  question  is  a  reason  why  every 
effort  should  now  be  mads  to  have  these  parks  placed,  as  the  law  provides, 
under  the  Park  Department  at  the  earliest  moment  and  thrown  open  im- 
mediately thereafter  to  the  people. 

To  the  three  gentlemen  who  constitute  the  Commission  of  Appraisal  the 
day  that  sees  the  termination  of  their  labor  will,  there  is  no  doubt,  be 
heartily  welcome.  They  may  literally  be  said  to  give  their  time  and 
experience  as  a  gratuity  to  the  city,  for  the  compensation  allowed  by  law 
for  their  services  is  a  mere  bagatelle  to  men  of  their  means.  To  the  chair- 
man of  the  Commission,  Hon.  Luther  R.  Marsh,  who  freely  and  generously 
gave  his  time,  his  talents,  his  legal  services,  to  the  promotion  of  the  project 
from  the  start,  who  threw  on  that  side  the  weight  and  prestige  of  his  per- 
sonal and  professional  character,  the  city  is  especially  indebted.  And 
in  saying  this  no  injustice  is  done  to  others  who  effectively  aided  a  measure 
the  merit  and  value  of  which  will  be  appreciated  more  and  more  as  the 
years  roll  by. 

But  of  all  this  more  hereafter  and  in  its  p-rper  place.      The  matter  is 


THE  NEW  PABK3.  33 

referred  to  at  this  time  especially,  as  showing  the  necessity  for  expedition, 
in  justice  to  all  concerned,  to  the  people  that  they  may  have  the  parks  at 
the  earliest  day,  to  the  city  that  it  may  get  all  the  financial  and  other 
advantages  flowing  from  them,  and  to  the  Commissioners  that  no  more  of 
their  valuable  time  than  is  actually  required  for  the  completion  of  their 
work  is  consumed. 

As  the  vexed  questions  arising  out  of  the  contest  for  the  parks — 
one  side  endeavoring  to  hold  them,  the  other  determined  to  repeal  the 
law — are  closed  forever,  a  few  details  from  the  city's  records  as  to  the 
revenue  obtained  from  the  increased  value  of  the  land  around  the  Central 
Park  before  and  after  the  acquisition  of  the  various  tracts,  will  prove  of 
special  interest  just  now,  when  the  question  of  advancing  values  in  prop- 
erty fronting  on  and  contiguous  to  the  new  parks  must  necessarily  attract 
the  attention  of  the  public,  of  purchasers,  and  of  ofHcials  charged  with 
the  duty  of  assessing  real  estate. 

SOME  TELLING  FACTS  FROM  THE  HISTORY  OF  CENTRAL  PARK. 

In  1850,  three  years  before  the  Central  Park  bill  became  a  law,  the 
whole  area  of  the  12th  Ward,  which  a  few  years  after  was  cut  up  into 
the  12th,  19th  and  22i  Wards,  was  valued  at  $8,356,265,  and  six  years 
after  it  was  assessed  on  a  valuation  of  $26,429,565,  showing  more  than  a 
threefold  increase.  At  this  time  42d  street,  so  far  as  population  was  con- 
cerned, might  be  regarded  as  the  limit  of  the  city;  all  beyond,  and  in 
fact  some  distance  south  of  it,  consisting  of  "suburbs."  It  was  in  reality 
out  in  the  country;  there  were  fields  and  orchards  and  gardens — in  fact 
the  Central  Park  was  as  much  in  the  country  as  Van  Cortlandt  and  Pelham 
Bay  Parks  —  which  are  directly  accessible  by  railroads  that  carry 
the  visitor  not  merely  to  the  entrance,  but  right  into  the  grounds.  No 
wonder  if,  under  such  circumstances,  with  a  taxable  value  of  less  than 
three  hundred  millions,  some  of  the  big  property  owners  and  taxpayers — 
the  Astors,  the  Goelets,  etc. — should  have  taken  alarm  and  raised  a  clamor 
about  bankrupting  the  city;  but  the  wonder  is,  that,  with  the  experience 
since  acquired,  such  fears  should  now  be  entertained  as  to  the  expenditure 
of  an  amount  not  one  fourth  the  whole  cost  of  Central  Park  and  all  its 
improvements. 

Within  the  brief  space  of  five  years  the  taxable  value  cf  the  three 
Wards  bounding  the  park  advanced  from  $26,429,565  to  $47,107,393,  and 
in  1866  it  ran  up  to  $50,070,415.  To  attribute  this  extraordinary  ri?e  in 
ten  years  wholly  to  the  increase  of  population  would  be  absurd.  ^That  it 
was  partly  due  to  that  cause  there  can  be  no  doubt,  but  the  Central 
Park  bad  much  more  to  do  with  it,  and  the  boom  that  begun  the  year 
the  bill  became  a  law  continued  for  twenty  years,  when  the  official  figures 
gave  a  total  of  nearly  $35O,O3O,OJ0.  Here  was  an  increase  little  less  than 
tenfold  from  1856  to  1876,  far  in  advance  of  the  growth  of  the  popu- 
lation, which  showed  much  less  than  a  twofold  increase  in  the  same  time. 
When  it  is  understood  that  within  this  period  we  had  the  two  great 
financial  revulsions  of  1857  and  1873,  the  influence  of  Central  Park  in 
the  enhancement  of  values  will  be  f ullv  appreciated.     And  this  impetus  is 


34  .    THE  NEW"  PARKS. 

rendered  still  more  marked  by  contrast  with  the  assessed  valuation  of  the 
rest  of  the  city,  vrhich  from  1S:6  to  1876  had  gone  up  from  $314,452,533 
to  $639,452,160,  very  little  more  than  a  hundred  per  cent,  advance. 

In  view  of  these  figures,  in  view  of  testimony  no  less  convincing  and 
conclusive  as  to  the  great  and  numerous  advantages  derived  from  public 
parks  in  other  cities,  can  there  be  a  reasonable  doubt  that  similar  benefits 
■will  be  reaped  by  the  city  and  the  people  from  the  parks  established 
beyond  the  Harlem,  and  which  are  so  admirably  linked  together  by  con- 
necting parkways  as  to  form  one  beautiful  and  harmonious  system  ?  In 
the  selection  and  purchase  of  property,  whether  for  investment  or  imme- 
diate use,  the  lands  adjacent  to  and  in  tho  vicinity  of  these  open  spaces  will 
be  preferred  to  those  more  distant.  Once  satisfied  that  the  law  cannot  be 
repealed — and  it  is  now  evident  that  any  further  attempt  will  not  only  be 
futile  but  certain  to  entail  heavy  expense  and  loss  upon  the  city — the  atten- 
tion of  purchasers  will  be  directed  to  the  most  desirable  pieces  within  this 
territory. 

THE   SINKING  FUND   AND  THE   CITY  DEBT. 

As  to  the  financial  condition  of  the  city,  of  which  the  public  has  heard 
so  much  of  late,  a  few  facts  will  dispel  the  fears  excited  by  alarmists. 
According  to  the  Comptroller's  repDrt  for  lS3.j  the  value  of  all  assessible 
property  was  $1,420,988,286.  Of  this  amount  $1,203,941,065  was  in  real, 
$158,014,378  in  personal  estate,  and  $59,012,843  in  bank  stock.  Upon  this 
the  rate  was  2.29,  and  the  total  taxes  collectable  $33,421,550.  The  gross 
debt — so  called — as  if  there  could  be  any  true  debt  other  than  the  net  sum 
for  which  the  city  is  liable— was  on  the  31st  of  December,  1S86,  $131,601,103. 
The  "gross"  debt  for  the  year  1885  was  $129,145,764,  showing  an  iocrease 
of  $2,455,339,  whereas  there  was  really  a  reduction  of  the  debt  in  1886 
instead  of  an  increase.  So  much  for  this  peculiar  method  of  keeping  the 
city  accounts,  and  now  for  the  true  state  of  the  case.  Of  the  "  gross"  debt 
for  1SS5,  $35,077,139.99  consisted  of  bonds,  bought,  paid  for  and  held  by 
the  city  until  the  day  on  which  they  mature— iu  some  cases  many  years 
away  off  in  the  future — when  they  will  be  cancelled. 

The  process  of  reasoning,  by  which  these  purchased  bonds  were  included 
in  the  debt  of  the  city,  was  not  appreciated  by  the  press  or  the  business 
pubUc,  and  the  Court  of  last  resort  swept  away  all  the  specious  arguments 
as  worthless  and  brought  the  financial  wiseacres  and  empirics  down  to 
their  bearings.  Of  the  "  gross"  debt  for  1SS6,  bonds  to  the  value  of  $38,- 
294,958.10  were  held  by  the  sinking  fund,  evidence  of  indebtedness  which, 
according  to  the  decision  of  the  Court  of  Appeals,  delivered  on  the  3!)th  of 
April,  1886,  were  practically  no  evidence  at  all,  for,  as  that  tribunal  held, 
"  a  debt  once  paid  has  no  existence,  and  it  is  impossible  that  taxation  should 
be  resorted  to  in  order  to  meet  a  fanciful  objection,  or  one  which  by  re- 
demption is  in  the  hands  of  the  debtor."  Now  as  the  amount  of  bonds  in 
the  sinking  fund  at  the  close  of  1886  was  $33,294,958.10,  the  actual  debt  of 
the  city  was  $93,306,145.47,  which  shows  a  reduction  of  $763,479.53  on  the 
debt  statement  of  18S5,  and  not  an  increase  of  over  two  millions. 

In  the  meantime  the  resources  of  the  city,  as  indicated  by  th.i  receipts  of 


CD 


T) 


Oq 


THE  NEW  PARKS.  37 

the  sinking  fund,  steadily  increased.  In  1880  they  amounted  to  S-i,951,- 
237.04,  and  in  1S86.  to  $8,727,435.47,  an  increase  at  the  rate  of  $629,366  a 
year  ;  so  that  the  total  amount  from  and  including  1S80  to  and  including 
18S6,  a  period  of  seven  years,  reached  the  aggregate  of  $48,592,241.6),  or 
more  than  one-half  the  true  debt,  and  sufficient  to  pay  for  the  parks  five 
times  over. 

The  last  tax  estimate  values  the  total  assessible  i-eal  estate  at  $1,203,- 
941,065.  and  as  the  city,  under  the  constitutional  amendment,  can  issue 
bonds  to  the  amount  of  10  per  cent,  of  this  sum,  its  debt  is  at  present 
$27,087,961  below  the  limit;  so  that  this  amount  is  all  available  for  public 
improvements  if  required.  The  future,  of  course,  is  provided  for  from  the 
same  sources,  and  if  the  sinking  fund  should  grow  with  the  years,  in  five 
years  more  its  accumulating  revenues  ivill  reach  the  handsome  total  of 
•$53,077,625.  And  as  the  fund  increases  the  ascending  scale  of  real  estate 
values  will  by  1893,  in  all  probability,  have  reached  the  grand  aggregate 
of  $1,400,000,030,  or  probably  nearer  $1,450  000,000. 

It  is  evident  from  this  estimate  that  there  will  ba  within  the  time  speci- 
fied— by  the  year  1892— ample  means,  not  only  to  pay  for  the  land  within 
the  parks,  even  if  the  law  did  not  provide  for  its  purchase  by  the  issue  of 
bonds,  but  sufficient  for  the  construction  of  the  new  Croton  aqueduct  and 
dam,  for  new  school  houses,  new  docks  and  other  public  improvements. 
All  this  could  be  done  with  the  $53,077,625  which  will  be  paid  into  the 
sinking  fund  from  the  increasing  income  of  the  next  five  years,  and  with- 
out the  addition  of  a  single  dollar  to  the  yearly  tax  budget. 

THE  NEW  YORK  OF  THE  FUTURE. 

Nor  is  this  an  overestimate,  if  we  take  into  account  the  marvelous 
growth  of  our  population,  which  to  all  appearances  is  increasing  at  the 
rate  of  6  per  cent,  a  year,  as  in  the  decades  from  ISOO  to  1810,  from  1820  to 
1830,  from  1840  to  1850,  and  from  18.50  to  1860.  Should  the  present  accel- 
erated speed  continue  till  1890,  we  shall  have  in  that  year  over  1,903,030 
inhabitants  i:a  New  York,  and  this  rate  of  increase  gives  us  at  present  a 
population  of  at  least  1,700,000.  By  the  close  of  the  century  there  will,  if  this 
progress  is  maintained,  be  3,000,030  souls  within  our  city  limits.  Who 
can  then  say  that  we  exceeded  the  baunds  when  we  insisted  at  the 
commencement  of  the  park  movement  in  1881  in  appropriating  not  only 
the  large  tracts  within  the  city  limits,  but  the  park  by  the  Sound  ?  Had  we 
laid  out  6,030  acres  instead  of  3,800,  the  area  would  still  be  inadequate 
before  the  end  of  the  present  century.  Calling  the  attention  of  the  public 
nearly  six  years  ago  to  the  necessity  of  making  ample  provision  in  advance 
by  taking  the  most  desirable  and  suitable  sites  the  writer  referred  to  this 
marvelous  growth  of  our  population,  and  said  that  this  country  must  exercise 
a  vast,  a  controlling  influence  on  the  civilization,  the  policy,  the  commerce  of 
the  world,  and  the  great  metropolis,  the  commercial  capital  of  the  nation, 
must  be  the  financial  centre  around  which  the  business  interests  of  the 
whole  continent  shall  revolve;  that  London  will  no  longer  hold  the  balance 
of  power  in  the  monetary  world,  and  Lombard  street  and  the  Bourse  will 
be  governed  in  their  movements  by  the  Wall  street  barometer. 


38  THE  NEW  PARKS. 

The  New  York  of  the  future  will  be  not  only  to  the  New,  but  to  the  Old 
World  as  well,  what  London  and  Paris  are  to  Europe — the  great  centre  of 
capital,  commerce  and  enterprise,  the  arbiter  of  taste  and  fashion,  the 
magnet  to  attract  travelers  from  the  ends  of  the  earth.  Here  the  wealth  of  a 
continent  will  fiad  profitable  fields  for  investment;  here  art  and  genius  will 
discover  new  forms  of  expression;  here  invention  will  lighten  labor,  and 
liberty  will  dignify  toil;  here,  too,  wealth  will  find  its  noblest  work 
in  erecting  homes  and  asylums  for  those  who  have  been  wounded  in  the 
battle  of  life,  and  its  most  graceful  use  in  founding  institutions  wherein  might 
be  stored  the  products  of  the  brain  power  of  the  world,  whether  in  printed 
volumes  or  illuminated  manuscripts,  in  speaking  canvas  or  in  sculptured 
marble;  such  institutions  as  the  Astor  and  L^nox  libraries.  Cooper  Insti- 
tute and  the  Museum  of  Art. 

Standing  midway  in  the  paths  of  commerce  and  trade  between  Europe 
and  Asia,  between  the  active  civilization  of  the  one  and  the  long  dormant 
but  awakening  civilization  of  the  other,  the  most  vivid  imagination  might 
well  shrink  from  foreshadowing  the  future  of  our  imperial  city.  Nothing 
can  impede  or  delay  its  progress  but  Ihe  apathy  or  indifference  of  its 
citizens;  nothing  impart  to  it  such  an  impetus  as  their  active  interest  in 
every  project  designed  to  extend  its  boundaries  and  increase  its  attractive- 
ness. Apprehensions  of  the  decline  of  trade  or  the  loss  of  this  or  that  branch 
of  business  from  competition  with  rival  cities  may  alar oi  timid  minds,  but  the 
true  policy  is  to  make  our  metropolis  so  inviting  that  it  will  bring  not  only 
pleasure  seekers  but  profit  seekers  to  enjoy  its  advantages  and  participate 
in  its  pleasures.  The  New  York  for  which  we  are  now  to  provide  is  a  city 
whose  population  will,  within  the  present  century,  surge  in  great  waves  up' 
to  the  northern  and  eastern  boundary  lines  and  into  Westchester  county. 
In  the  next  quarter  of  a  century  the  new  parks  will  be  as  inadequate  to  the 
demands  of  the  future  as  the  Central  Park  is  to  meet  the  requirements  of 
the  present. 

THE  REMEDY  FOR  A  GREAT  EVIL. 

"Reference  has  been  made  to  the  opportunity  afforded  our  wealthy  citizens 
by  the  great  park  on  the  Sound  for  the  exercise  of  their  benevolence  in 
providiiig  free  summer  excursions  for  the  poor  and  infirm,  for  helpless 
age,  the  children  of  our  orphan  asjlums  and  the  inmates  of  similar  institu- 
tions. There  is  no  enterprise  of  a  charitable  or  benevolent  character  more 
deserving  of  sympathy  and  substantial  aid  than  the  "  Fresh  Air  Fund," 
and  where  can  fresh  air  be  found  in  greater  abundance  than  in  the  invig- 
orating breezes  that  blow  over  Pelham  Bay  Park  from  the  purifying  waters 
of  the  Sound.  Were  it  possible  to  transplant  the  hundreds  of  thousands  of 
toilers  from  the  sweltering,  suffocating,  poison-laden  atmosphere  of  the  long 
miles  of  tenement  houses  to  this  great  reservoir  and  bathe  them  in  its 
refreshing  air  and  water  during  the  Saturday  half  holiday  of  each  week, 
there  would  be  a  decline  in  the  death  rata  and  a  marked  reduction  in  the 
bills  of  mortality. 

It  is  to  be  hoped  that  the  creation  of  small  parks  in  the  densely-packed 
sections  of  the  city  will  not, result  in  still  more  densely  packing  the  huge, 


03 

o 


H 


O 


THE  NEW"  PARKS.  41 

overcrowded,  surrounding  buildings,  where  the  death  rate  is  so  largely  in 
excess  of  that  in  other  parts  of  the  city.  Some  twenty  years  ago  the  Board 
of  Health  suggested  that  the  only  absolute  remedy  for  this  great  evil  was 
the  removal  "  of  the  overcrowded  population  to  the  neighboring  county, 
where  cheaper  and  better  dwellings  can  be  procured.  This,"  it  was  said, 
*'  could  not  be  done  until  means  are  provided  by  which  the  laboring  popu- 
lation can  return  to  their  work  expeditiously  and  at  little  expense."  Of 
course  the  dispersion  of  hundreds  of  thousands  living  in  tenement  houses  can 
only  be  accomplished  in  time  and  by  other  than  compulsory  means.  One 
of  the  most  effectual  of  these  is  the  extension  of  the  business  area  of  the 
city,  its  encroachment  on  the  residential  portion  and  the  consequent 
displacement  of  the  occupants  and  their  removal  to  other  parts.  Another 
is  the  strict  enforcement  of  the  law  limiting  the  number  of  persons  to  each 
house  and  prescribing  the  dimensions  of  the  apartments.  But  the  most 
effectual,  not  only  for  the  sanitary  welfare,  but  for  the  moral  well-being  of 
the  people,  is  a  change  of  locality,  pure  air  and  more  commodious  dwellings. 
To  effect  the  purpose  for  which  they  are  designed  the  creation  of  small 
parks  should  be  accompanied  by  a  revolution  in  the  tenement  house  system. 
Otherwise  the  killing  economy  of  spaca,  fatal  alike  to  health  and  morals, 
may  go  on  increasing,  and  what  was  intended  as  a  blessing  may  prove  a 
curse.  However,  as  the  chances  are  largely  in  favor  of  the  proposed 
and  desired  improvement  the  so'^ner  it  is  carried  into  operation  the  better, 
and  it  is  to  be  hoped  tha";  as  the  necessary  power  is  conferred  by  the  law 
there  will  be  within  the  next  Ave  years  many  small  pa;  ks  located  and  ready 
for  us3  in  the  most  populous  and  the  most  unhealthy  districts. 

But  what  a  pity  it  is  that  several  years  must  elapse  before  the  people  for 
whose  recreation  the  small  parks  law  was  enacted  can  have  the  benefit  of 
them.  The  structures  which  now  encumber  the  ground  must  be  removed, 
the  vacant  spaces  filled  in  with  new  earth,  the  grounds  laid  out  and  the 
trees  planted— a  work  which  will  involve,  in  addition  to  the  cost  of  the 
buildings,  a  heavy  expense.  Nothing  of  this  will  be  requirei  in  the 
case  of  the  new  pirks  in  the  northern  half  of  the  city,  which  are  even 
now  ready  for  occupation. 

THE  TENEMENT  HOUSE  PROBLEM. 

The  costly  experience  which  the  city  has  acquired  on  this  vitally  important 
tenement  house  question  should  suggest  some  practical  means  of  preventing 
the  same  evils  in  the  33d  and  24th  Wards,  the  area  of  which  is  about  equal 
in  extent  to  the  twenty-two  wards  south  of  the  Harlem  River.  As  New 
York  has  now  not  more  than  one  fifth  or  one-sixth  of  the  population  which 
w  ill  hereafter  reside  w  ithin  its  limits  the  legislation  necessary  to  secure  and 
preserve  the  requisite  sanitary  regulations  as  to  dwelling  space  for  the 
inillu  ns  to  come  cannot  be  provided  too  soon.  There  is  a  large  area  yet  to 
be  occupied,  and  on  this  area  millions  are  to  live.  Shall  they  be  packed  at 
the  rate  of  276,480  human  beings  to  the  equare  mile,  as  they  are  to-day  in 
the  10th  Ward;  or,  at  the  average  of  22.5,2yO  to  the  same  area,  as  in  the 
10th,  nth,  13th,  14th  and  17th  Wards. 

But  the  worst  of  this  packing  business  is  not  told,  the  climax  is  only 


43  THE  NEW  PARKS. 

reached  when  we  ascertaia  from  the  census  of  1833  that  thire  were  in  these 
wards  sections  or  blacks  in  which  the  average  of  population  to  the  square 
mile  was,  incredible  as  it  may  appear,  539,713.  These  are  the  fields  from 
which  Death  gathers  his  most  prolific  harvests;  here  infants  and  children 
"  fall  like  corn  before  the  reaper;"  here  the  slaughter  of  the  innocents  goes 
on  from  day  to  day  and  from  year  to  year  unchecked  and  almost  unnoticed. 
Space,  air,  salubrious  and  commodious  habitations,  parks,  the  lungs  of 
cities — these  are  the  essentials  to  health  and  strength,  to  mental  as  well  as 
physical  vigor  and  power.  More  laws  to  regulate  and  secure  the  essential 
sanitary  conditions,  the  proper  distribution  of  space  in  the  erection  of 
buildings,  should  be  enacted  at  the  earliest  day  possible,  in  order  to  prevent 
the  perpetuation  and  extension  of  the  fatal  tenement  house  system  over  the 
yet  unoccupied  territory.  New  York  should  be  built  hereafter  along  the 
ground,  not  into  the  sky;  outward,  not  upward.  In  the  space  thus  far  occu- 
pied by  thousands  of  dwellings  there  is  only  room,  under  proper  sanitary 
conditions,  for  half  the  numbar. 

NEW  YORK'S  PACKED  POPULATION. 

The  last  census  presented  a  striking  contrast  between  New  York  and  other 
cities  in  the  proportion  of  inhabitants  to  the  area  occupied.  In  1S80  the 
population  of  our  city  was  1,203,299,  who  lived  in  73,684  dwellings,  an 
average  of  16}^  to  each  house.  Brooklyn  had  a  population  of  566,663  In 
62,233  dwellings,  an  average  of  about  9;  and  Philadelphia  847,170  living  in 
146,412,  or  an  average  of  6  to  a  house.  Thus  the  great  city  on  the  Delaware, 
with  a  litMe  more  than  two-thirds  the  population  of  ths  great  city  on  the 
Hudson,  had  double  the  number  of  dwellings.  No  wonder  if  such  unhealthy 
localities  as  those  on  the  east  and  parts  of  the  west  side  of  the  city,  where 
the  huge  tenement  houses,  four,  five  and  six  stories  high,  extending  for 
miles  and  miles  along  the  avenues  and  streets  and  looming  up  in  unsunned 
lanes  and  alleys,  swell  the  death-rate  of  the  city  far  beyond  the  mortality 
of  other  sections.  Pure  air  is  as  essential  to  the  healthy  growth  and 
development  of  a  people  as  the  food  they  eat.  Pack  them  into  boxes,  not 
rooms,  and  their  growth  physically,  mentally  and  morally  will  be  stunted. 

As  far  back  as  October,  1881,  when  earnestly  uiging  on  the  New  York 
public  the  pressing  necessity  for  an  increase  ot  the  park  area  of  the  city  by 
the  selection  of  suitable  sites  in  the  23d  and  21th  Wards  and  the  adjacent 
section  of  Westchester  county,  the  writer  referred  to  the  opportunity 
which  would  be  presented  by  rapid  transit  for  the  distribution  of  the  denizens 
of  the  tenement- house  district,  and  their  transfer  to  the  healthier  localides 
beyond  the  Harlem.  ' '  Here,"  he  then  said,  ' '  land  can  be  had  at  reasonable 
prices,  and  dwellings  fii  for  human  beings  can  be  built  and  rented  at  moderate 
rates.  Here,  along  the  lines  of  rapid  transit,  will  eventually  be  gathered  by 
tens  of  thousands  the  workers  of  the  great  metropolis,  no  longer  cooped  up  in 
wretched,  foul  and  disease-laden  tenements — living  tombs  of  the  toiUng 
masses.  Here  there  will  be  no  packing  into  close,  narrow,  pest-breeding 
apartments,  but  neat,  commodious  cottages  free  from  that  mental  and 
physical  contamination  which  is  the  curse  of  over-crowded  cities.  Rapid 
transit  furnishes  the  most  practical  solution  of  the  tenement-house  problem. 


THE  NEW  PARKS.  43 

and  it  is  safe  to  say  that  the  promise  of  such  a  system  as  will  meet  all 
requirements  is  near  its  fulfilment." 

THE   KAPID   TRANSIT   QUESTION. 

Many  of  the  difficulties  which  heretofore  interfered  with  the  practical 
solution  of  this  vexed  question  no  longer  exist ;  they  have  been  removed  by 
the  system  of  rapid  transit,  which,  although  not  as  perfect  as  could  be 
wished,  will  eventually  furnish  all  the  facilities  of  transportation  necessary 
to  enable  a  large  portion  of  the  working  classes  to  secure  homes  in  healthier 
localities  and  yet  be  placed,  in  point  of  time,  within  convenient  reach  of 
their  workshops,  factories,  stores  and  other  places  of  business.  For  those 
who  are  obliged  to  remain  there  will  be  less  crowding,  consequently 
healthier  dwellings;  and  when  they  can  give  a  day  to  recreation  in  the 
country  or  desire  to  spend  their  half  holiday  in  the  large  parks,  the  improved 
facilities  of  transit  will  enable  them  to  do  so  in  a  half  hour  at  the  utmost. 
As  yet  rapid  transit  is  only  in  its  infancy,  the  present  structures  to 
a  certain  extent  experimental  and  destined  in  the  near  future  to  give  way 
to  an  improved  system.  The  inventive  genius  of  our  people,  so  prolific  in 
resources,  will  pr«)ve  equal  to  the  demands  made  upon  it,  and  as  the  old 
stage  coach  gave  way  to  the  lightning  express,  and  as  the  time  of  the 
surface  car  has  been  reduced  one-half  by  the  elevated  railroad  train,  so 
the  speed  of  the  latter  will  be  doubled  to  meet  the  public  demand. 

Who  will  say  that  in  the  near  future  some,  as  yet  undiscovered,  force, 
acting  through  new  mechanical  appliances,  will  not  treble  the  rate  oC  speed 
with  which  one  hundred  and  twenty  millions  a  year  are  at  present 
carried  over  our  elevated  railroads.  It  is  not  yet  ten  years  since  these 
roads  were  opened  to  travel,  and  so  absolutely  indispensable  have  they 
become  to  the  public  that  one  week's  suspension  of  the  various  lines  would 
literally  paralyze  business.  Without  them  the  parks  would  be  much  less 
accessible;  with  them  the  great  pleasure  grounds  can  be  reached  in  less 
than  an  hour  from  the  most  distant  parts  of  the  city,  and  when  we  have 
through  travel  and  express  trains  this  tim?  can  be  reduced  one-half. 
They  will  be  nearer  to  the  great  mass  of  our  population  than  was  Central 
Park  before  the  elevated  railways  were  constructed  and  they  will  be  what 
Central  has  never  been — the  play  grounds  of  the  people.  Moreover,  they 
will  be  a  potent  factor  in  keeping  our  population  within  our  own  borders 
and  in  bringing  back  tens  of  thousands  who  have  been  induced  by  the 
superior  facilities  of  transit  presented  beyond  the  city  limits  to  seek  dwellings 
in  New  Jersey,  Long  Island  and  elsewhere.  To  this  cause  may  be  ascribed 
in  part  the  marked  increase  of  population  in  these  localities  since  the  last 
census. 

The  statistics  of  travel  along  all  the  lines — surface  and  elevated — may 
well  excite  surprise.  The  extraordinary  increase  of  business  on  the  latter 
evidently  far  exceeded  the  calculations  of  the  companies  themselves,  and 
after  a  few  years  they  were  obliged  to  employ  more  powerful  motors,  to 
run  longer  trains  and  to  reduce  the  time  between  them.  If  the  following 
table  could  be  taken  as  a  basis  of  calculation  the  population  of  the  city 


44  THE  NEW  PARKS. 

miist  have  doubled  within  the  last  ten  years,   and  wi  have,  instead  of 
seventeen  hundred  thousand,  two  millions  of  inhabitants: 

Elevated  R.  R.      Horse  Railways  Total. 

1877 3,011,862  160,9i4,«6  163,936,298 

1878 9,291,319  160.932,83-2  170,244.151 

1879 46,045,181  142,038,381  188,083,562 

3880 60,831,757  150,390,592  2ll,2ii>,349 

1881 75,585,778  146.050,808  221,6^6,586 

1882 86,361.029  166,510.617  252,871,646 

1883 92,124,943  175,994,523  268,107,732 

1884 96.702,620  187,413,242  284,115,862 

1885 103,354,726  191,165,035  £94  525,764 

1886 115,109,591  204,313,288  319,422,839 

An  inspection  of  these  figures  and  a  comparison  of  the  number  of  passen- 
gers carried  by  the  horse  cars  and  the  elevated  trains  show  that  while  there 
was  a  falling  off  in  the  horse  car  travel  during  1879,  1S80  and  1881,  the  lost 
business  was  recovered  in  18S2,  '3,  '4,  '5  and  '6,  and  largely  augmented — the 
travel  of  1SS6  over  1878  being  more  than  23  per  cent.  This  would  indicate, 
if  the  figures  were  accepted  as  a  correct  basis  for  estimate,  a  corresponding 
increase  in  the  population,  and  adding  thereto  the  increase  of  travel  by  the 
elevated  roads  from  1878  to  1886— about  106,003,030— we  should  have,  as 
stated,  nearly  two  millions  of  inhabitants  at  present  in  New  York.  But  we 
cannot  rely  for  accurate  estimates  upon  these  statistics,  for  it  is  a  well- 
established  fact  that  as  the  facilities  and  accommodations  for  transporta- 
tion are  improved  an  increased  business  follows,  independent  of  the  growth 
of  population.  It  is  in  this  case,  as  in  every  other — improved  methods  beget 
an  increased  demand. 

ACCESS  TO  THE   NEW  PARKS. 

Particular  reference  is  made  to  this  question  of  rapid  transit  as  it  has  a 
special  interest  in  relation  to  the  new  parks.  In  connection  with  the 
progress  of  the  city  northward  it  is  a  matter  of  great  impartance.  Within 
a  year  the  elevated  road  on  Third  avenue  beyond  the  Harlem  will  have 
been  constructed  as  far  as  its  terminus  on  the  Bronx,  and  probably  in  less 
than  five  years  the  various  lines  comprising  the  suburban  rapid  transit 
system  will  be  finished.  The  Harlem  River  improvement  will  give  a  decided 
impetus  to  the  development  and  growth  of  our  two  most  northern  wards 
and  to  the  adjacent  portions  of  Westchester  county,  outside  of  the  city 
now,  but  certain  in  two  or  three  years  to  be  annexed ;  and  these  wards 
will  have  a  population  of  half  a  million  by  the  time  that  improvement 
is  completed.  While  it  is  in  progress  new  lines  of  travel  will  be  opened, 
new  routes  to  the  parks  constructed,  and  the  annexed  district,  so 
called,  wiU  be  traversed  by  as  many  means  of  transit  as  the  other  half 
of  New  York  below  the  Harlem.  To  Van  Cortlandfc  Park  there  will  be, 
besides  the  northern  road,  branches  from  the  Harlem  and  the  Hudson 
River,  while  the  Bronx  Park  will  be  no  less  liberally  supplied  with  means 
of  access,  and  the  grand  outlying  park,  the  indented  shores  of  which  extend 
in  many  curved  and  graceful  lines  a  distanca  of  nine  miles,  will  be  no  less 
generously  provided  with  tributary  transit  roads.  There  will  be  no  lack 
of  means  of  transportation  when  the  new  park  territory  is  opened 
throughout  its  whole  length  and  breadth      The  necessary  facilities  will  be 


DO 


C/) 


ID 
o 


THE   NEW   PARKS.  47 

ready,  are  in  fact  ready  now  and  only  waiting  the  moment  when  the 
lands  shall  be  declared  free  to  the  public. 

When  that  announcement  is  made  the  paople  will  be  at  liberty  to 
wander  over  the  grean  fields,  up  the  grassy  slopes,  through  the  shady 
woods,  free  from  the  restraints  impose!  on  thj  visitors  to  the  Central. 
There  they  will  not  ba  confiaed  to  dusty  roads  and  asphaltum  walks,  but 
can  enjoy  themselves  in  picnics  ia  the  groves,  athletic  exercises  on  the 
broad  meadows,  games  of  croquet,  base-ball,  tennis,  polo  or  lacrosse,  or 
such  other  recreation  or  exercise  as  they  fancy.  Already  eager  thousands 
throng  every  Sunday  up  to  the  very  borders  of  the  parks,  gazing  with 
wistful  eyes  on  the  tempting  scanes,  and,  when  not  stopped  by  the  owners, 
passing  through  the  gates,  or  over  the  fences  into  the  appropriated  grounds. 
The  elevated  roads  during  the  summer  season,  and  even  into  the  fall, 
carry  tens  of  thousands  into  the  new  wards  which  are  already  known  by 
the  distinctive  title  of  the  park  district;  and  these  are  but  the  precursors 
of  the  greater  multitude  that  will  follow  when  all  is  accomplished — the 
bonds  issued,  the  Park  Department  in  control  and  the  people  in  acknowl- 
edged possession. 

Last  year  and  the  year  previous  there  were  unmistakable  indications  of  the 
impatient  desire  of  the  public  to  enjoy  these  great  pleasure  grounds.  In  some 
instances  the  visitors  denied  the  right  of  the  occupants  to  exclude  them, 
forced  their  way  in  and  insisted  that  as  the  lands  were  public  parks  they 
had  a  right  to  remain. 

THE  PARADE  GROUND  AND  POPULAR  RECREATIONS. 

In  Van  Cortlandt,  Bronx  and  Pelham  Bay  Parks  there  have  been 
regular  picnic  parties,  although  in  portions  of  Pelham  Park  prohibitory 
notices  warn  trespassers  off  the  land.  In  Van  Cortlandt  Park  curlers  and 
skaters  have,  through  the  courtesy  of  the  proprietor,  free  use  of  the  lake  in 
the  winter,  and  the  military  are  to  be  accorded  the  privilege  next  fall  of 
using  the  hundred  and  twenty  acres  which  have  been  set  apart  for  a  parade 
ground,  without  awaiting  the  report  of  the  Commissioners,  or  its  confirma- 
tion by  the  Supreme  Court.  And  wbat  a  magnificent  parade  ground  that 
level  sweep  of  120  acres  will  make!  What  Champs  de  Mars  is  framed  in 
scenery  so  exquisite  ?  On  the  west  of  it,  and  overlooking  Broadway,  rises 
the  picturesque  range  of  hills,  which  form  the  eastern  bank  of  the  Hudson, 
while  on  the  other  side  the  magnificent  Palisades  bound  the  norizon. 
Away  to  the  south  is  the  valley  of  the  Harlem,  spanned  by  the  high  arches 
upholding  the  tunnel  which  carries  to  the  great  city  nearly  a  hundred  mil- 
lion gallons  of  pure  water  daily.  To  the  north  are  the  wooded  hilLj  of  the 
park,  and  beyond  its  Umit,  which  is  coterminous  with  the  city  line,  are 
to  be  seen  from  these  hills  glimjises  of  the  Hudson  and  some  of  the  finest 
views  to  be  found  along  the  whole  course  of  our  American  Rhine.  A  few 
hundred  yards  to  the  east  of  the  inclosed  tract  is  a  sylvan  lake  covering  an 
extent  of  fifty  acres,  which  can  be  enlarged  to  eighty,  and  which  is  supplied 
by  the  ever-flowing  Mosholu  and  natural  springs. 

Besides  the  opportunity  the  parks  afford  for  recreation  and  healthful 
exercise,  there  are  many  varied  features  that  can  be  introduced  hereafter 


48  THE  NEW  PARKS. 

•which  will  be  appreciated  by  visitors— many  uses  to  which  they  can  b© 
legitimately  put  and  which  would  materially  increase  the  revenues  of  the 
Sinking  Fund,  and  thus  directly  contributs  towards  the  extinction  of  the 
municipal  debt. 

Capital  and  enterprise  combined  will  be  quick  to  find  in  such  features 
proiitable  investment,  and  pay  liberally  for  the  privileges  and  grants 
which  they  may  secure  from  the  city.  Every  month,  therefore,  that  the 
people  are  deprived  of  these  benefits  is  so  much  lost  to  the  municipal  treasury. 

A   PERMANENT  INDUSTRIAL  EXHIBITION. 

One  of  the  most  valuable,  one  of  the  most  important,  and  doubtless  one 
of  the  most  popular  attractions  that  could  be  engrafted  on  the  parks,  would 
be  a  permanent  industrial  exhibition,  for  which  buildings  should  be  erected 
in  a  style  and  on  a  scale  commensurate  with  the  character  of  the  enter- 
prise. Such  a  work,  if  properly  organized,  could  be  made  to  subserve  the 
industrial  interests  of  the  whole  country,  and  be  to  the  useful  what  galleries 
of  painting  and  sculpture  are  to  the  fine  arts. 

The  value  of  an  institution  of  this  character  can  hardly  be  overestimated, 
not  merely  as  an  instructor  of  the  people,  but  as  affording  an  opportunity 
of  presenting  on  a  grand  and  comprehensive  scale  the  progress  of  the 
mechanic  arts  throughout  the  world,  and  especially  as  demonstrated  in  the 
products  of  American  genius.  Classified  according  to  the  States  which 
have  contributed  to  the  development  and  perfection  of  this  or  that  inven- 
tion, the  many  labor-saving  machines,  and  the  multiplied  and  varied 
applications  of  mechanical  power,  whether  used  in  manufactures  or  in 
commerce,  in  supplying  human  wants  or  facilitating  travel  and  transporta- 
tion— such  an  exhibition  would  practically  illustrate  the  progress  of 
material  civilization,  and  present  in  a  historical  form  the  various  stages  in 
each  particular  case  from  the  earliest  and  crudest  efforts  to  the  latest 
improvement,  or  the  perfected  machine.  A  large  portion  of  the  necessary 
material  could  be  duplicated  from  the  Patent  Office  at  Washington,  but  the 
arrangement  and  classification  in  chronological  order  would  be  a  task 
requiring  for  its  successful  accomplishment  the  highest  qualifications  and 
the  ripest  experience. 

An  exhibition  of  this  character  on  Hunter's  Island,  in  Pelham  Park,  would 
constitute  one  of  the  most  attractive  features  in  the  multiplying  attractions 
of  our  cosmopolitan  city.  There  is  no  tract  in  all  th^  new  park  domain  so 
well  adapted  for  the  purpose.  The  scenery  is  picturesque  in  the  highest 
degree,  and  it  possesses  what  the  Sydenham  Exhibition  lacks,  an  outlook 
over  one  of  the  most  beautiful  sheets  of  water  in  the  world. 

As  to  capital,  there  is  an  abundance  in  New  York  for  the  promotion  of 
such  a  W0rk,  but  the  enterprise  could  justly  appeal  to  the  whole  country,  and 
if  carried  out  on  the  plan  indicated  it  would  necessarily  embrace  every  sec- 
tion and  include  every  State.  The  objection  as  to  distance  is  without 
force,  for  the  means  of  access  furnished  by  the  Portchester  and  Harlem 
road,  which  runs  through  the  park,  in  which  it  has  even  now  three  stations, 
and  by  the  great  fleet  of  steamboats  ready  for  the  task,  would  meet  all 
demands. 


THE  NEW"  PARKS.  49 

A  DIVERSIFIED   PARK  SYSTEM. 

The  visitor  to  the  three  great  parks  cannot  fail  to  observe  the  st.  iking 
contrast  presented  by  their  topography.  It  is  doubtful,  indeed,  if  vfithin 
an  equal  area  anywhere  in  the  United  States  such  wide  diversity  could  b  j 
found.  The  sites  selected  differ  in  a  marked  degree  from  one  another,  and 
in  this  difference  is  to  be  found  the  particular  charms  of  each.  Our  metrop- 
olis has  been  especially  favored  in  this  respect,  probably  beyond  any  other 
capital  in  the  world.  So  rapid  has  been  its  development  and  growth  that 
had  the  movement  through  which  these  lands  have  been  secured  been 
delayed  for  ten  or  fifteen  years  this  magnifieent  park  domain  would  never 
have  been  acquired. 

It  is  certain  that  if  the  precise  tracts,  located  under  the  authority  con- 
ferred by  the  act  of  1883  and  taken  by  the  act  of  1834.  could  be  purchased 
fifteen  years  hence  they  could  not  be  obtained  for  quadruple  the  price 
which  the  city  will  pay  for  them  when  the  Commisioners  of  Appraisal 
have  determined  their  value. 

It  has  been  said  that  they  are  natural  parks;  but  this,  after  all,  does  not 
convey  an  adequate  idea  of  their  character  as  public  pleasure  grounds, 
though  it  is  of  much  importance  to  the  city  when  the  question  of  expense  is 
considered.  It  is  a  great  matter  certainly  when  it  is  understood  that  the 
Central  is  a  wholly  artificial  affair ;  that  it  has  been  literally  manufactured  at 
a  cost  of  over  twenty  thousand  dolla'-s  an  acre,  and  that  any  expense  beyond 
that  required  for  the  laying  out  and  construction  of  a  few  roads  and  walks 
will  be  wholly  unnecessary  in  the  case  of  the  newparks.  And  this  is  a  subject 
of  no  small  account — in  point  of  fact  it  is  a  question  of  millions,  for  within 
the  tracts  appropriated  are  lakes  and  streams  and  hills  and  rocks  and 
meadows  and  glades  and  woods,  the  growth  of  centuries— in  a  word,  all  the 
natural  features  necessary  to  constitute  a  park,  and  many  of  which,  as  in 
the  ca^  of  the  Central,  could  only  be  furnished  at  an  enormous  cost.  But 
there  is  one  thing  which  no  amount  of  money  could  create — the  natural 
beauties  of  the  sites  selected,  and  which  will  be  found  on  inspection  to 
justify  all  that  has  been  said  in  their  praise. 

AREA  OF  PARKS  AND  PARKWAYS. 

It  is  now  nearly  six  years  since  the  writer,  as  stated  elsewhere,  called 
public  attention  in  a  series  of  articles  to  the  immediate  necessity  of  securing 
at  least  four  or  five  thousand  acres  of  land  in  the  annexed  district  and  the 
adjacent  territory  of  Westchester  County,  and  the  location  of  which  he 
indicated  on  an  accompanying  map.  Referring  to  the  two  great  parks 
since  taken  under  the  act  of  1884,  he  alluded  to  the  difference  in  the  topo- 
graphy as  one  of  the  great  advantages  to  be  secured  in  the  location  of  the 
sites  at  the  points  selected.  It  was  then  urged  as  an  essential  feature  of 
the  system  that  the  "  two  great  suburban  parks  might  be  connected  by  one 
or  more  grand  boulevards,  which  should  be  included  in  the  general  plan." 

At  that  time  it  was  hoped  that  when  the  importance  of  the  subject  was 
fully  appreciated  and  the  deficiency  of  New  York  in  the  matter  of  parks 
was  thoroughly  understood,  a  movement  in  favor  of  the  addition  of  at 
least  four  thousand  acres  would  mett  wi,h  popular  encouragement  and  sup- 


50  THE  NEW  PARKS. 

port.     The  result  of  the  pirkmovexent  proved  that  the  confidence  felt  in 

the  approval  of  the  public  was  not  uu  founded.     The  area  acquired  under 

the  act  of  1884  was  3,848  39-103  acres,  which  were  distributed  as  follows  : 

A.cr6S 

Van  Cortlandt  Park 1,069  65-100 

Bronx  Park     653 

Pelham  Bay  Park 1,740 

CrotonaPark 135  34-100 

St.  Mary's  Park  23  35-100 

Claremont  Park 38  05-100 

Mosholu  Parkway        80 

Bronx  and  Pelham  Parkway 9u 

Crotona  ParKway 12 

Total 3,848  S9-100 

Added  to  the  parks  already  established,  this  gives  a  total  of  about  5,000 
acres. 

VAN  CORTLAXDT  PARK,  PARADE  GROUND  AND  RIFLE  RANGE. 

Of  the  area  embraced  in  the  new  parks  and  parkways  beyond  the  Harlem, 
the  tract  of  1,069  acres  included  in  the  Van  Cortlandt  Park  possesses  in  the 
picturesque  beauty  of  the  surrounding  country,  as  well  as  in  its  diversified 
surface,  a  rare  combination  of  all  that  is  essential  to  a  great  suburban  plea- 
sure ground.  Lying  midway  between  the  Hudson  and  the  Bronx  its  great- 
est width  is  a  mile  and  three-quarters,  while  at  its  narrowest  part  it  is  about 
a  mile  across,  and  its  extreme  length  two  and  a-quarter  miles.  Of  its  area, 
40  acres  are  highly  improved  and  cultivated  garden  spots,  403  are  in  wood, 
and  450  in  meadow.  Of  the  meadow  land,  120  acres  are  so  uniformly  level, 
that  they  can,  at  a  comparatively  moderate  cost,  be  converted  into  a  mag- 
nificent parade  ground.  Probably  there  is  not  within  the  city  limits  a  more 
suitable  or  a  more  valuable  tract  for  this  purpose. 

Reference  was  made  to  the  subject  of  a  parade  ground,  but  as  the  allu- 
sion was  necessarily  brief,  the  importance  of  this  feature  in  the  park,  the 
extent  which  it  covers,  and  the  fact  that  it  will  not  be  exclusively  devoted 
to  the  use  of  the  National  Guard,  justifies  more  than  a  passing  notice. 

Our  National  Guard  have  for  years  been  dependent  on  the  courtesy  of  the 
Brooklyn  authorities  on  the  occasion  of  special  parades,  and  they  will  have 
now,  for  th<?  first  time  in  the  history  of  the  First  Division,  a  space  suflBcient 
for  their  proper  education  and  training  in  the  practical  duties  of  the  citizsn 
soldier.  Heretofore  every  effort  to  secure  a  suitable  tract  has  failed.  The 
Legislature  has  been  appealed  to  again  and  again,  and  when  at  length,  after 
years  of  unavailing  effort,  an  act  was  passed  condemning  a  piece  of  land  of 
somewhat  limited  area;  the  law  was  repealed,  and  the  city  was  involved  in 
tedious  and  expensive  litigation— a  specimen  of  the  sagacity  by  which  its 
interests  are  protected.  It  has  lost  the  land,  and  it  has  spent  tens  of  thou- 
sands of  dollars  to  no  purpose.  When  the  Central  Park  was  under  consider- 
ation, it  was  supposed  that  a  portion  of  the  ground  would  be  set  apart  for 
the  use  of  the  military,  although  it  was  not  cartain  that  any  direct  pledge 
was  made  to  that  effect.  Whatever  hopes  were  then  entertained  by  the 
National  Guard  that  their  wants  would  be  provided  for  have  been  rudely 
dispelled  by  the  fierce  opposition  made  to  the  attempt  to  secure  by  legislation 
the  temporary  use  of  a  particular  tract  in  the  park.    Without  entering  into 


Bronx  Park — DeLancey's  Ancient  Pine. 


THE  NEW  PARES.  53 

the  merits  of  the  controversy,  it  must  be  admitted  that  the  city  should  long 
ago  have  acknowledged  and  made  ample  provision  to  enable  them  to  ac- 
quire that  degree  of  efficiency  so  essential  to  the  proper  discharge  of  the 
duties  of  the  service  in  which  they  are  enlisted,  and  to  which  they  freely 
give  their  time  without  compensation  or  reward. 

Hereafter  there  can  be  no  controvery  as  to  a  parade  ground,  for  the 
right  of  the  National  Guard  to  the  use  of  the  130  acres  for  this  purpose,  and 
as  "  a  camp  and  drill  ground,"  is  fully  provided  for  in  section  6  of  the  act. 
Not  only  has  a  parade  ground  been  located  in  this  park,  but  "  a  rifle  range 
to  be  used  for  rifle  and  target  practice :  said  parade  ground  and  rifle  range 
to  be  used  by  the  First  Division  of  the  National  Guard  of  the  State  of  New 
York  when  required  by  the  commanding  officer  of  such  Division." 

This  is  certainly  explicit  enough,  and  moreover  the  Park  Department  is 
directed  within  three  months  after  it  shall  have  obtained  control  to 
lay  out  the  parade  ground  in  the  portion  of  the  park  designated  for  the 
purpose.  Of  the  rifle  range,  which  is  to  the  east  of  the  Mosholu  and  at  the 
termination  of  whirh  is  a  natural  butt  of  rocks,  it  is  enough  to  say  that  it 
is  no  less  adapted  to  the  use  to  which  it  is  to  be  applied,  and  will  require 
little  outlay  for  its  improvement.  It  extends  along  the  valley  to  a  length 
of  twelve  or  fourteen  hundred  yards  and  the  overlooking  hill  along  which 
runs  the  old  aqueduct  affords  an  excellent  view  of  the  entire  range. 

GENEROUS  PROVISION  FOR  OUR  NATIONAL  GUARD. 

It  is,  of  course,  desirable  that  the  preliminary  work  of  the  Commission 
shall  be  got  out  of  the  way  as  soon  as  possible;  but  in  the  meantime  the 
present  owner  of  the  property  has  courteously  placed  the  tract  appropriated 
for  the  parade  ground  at  the  service  of  the  Division,  and  will  put  it  in 
proper  condition  so  that  it  can  be  used  next  September  or  October,  as  the 
officers  may  decide. 

As  the  parade  ground  will  only  be  occupied  on  certain  days  by  the 
National  Guard  it  will  be  free  at  all  other  times  to  athletic  and  other  clubs, 
and  during  the  appropriate  seasons  it  will  doubtless  be  in  constant  demand. 
There  need,  however,  be  no  crowding,  for  there  is  "  ample  room  and  verge 
enough  "  for  base  ball,  polo,  lacrosse  and  all  kinds  of  physical  recreation 
and  exercise,  and  should  it  in  time  be  found  insufficient  to  meet  all  the 
demands  that  may  be  made  upon  it,  abundance  of  space  can  be  had  in  the 
broad  meadows  of  Pelham  Bay  Park. 

The  opportunity  afforded  by  this  extensive  parade  ground,  which  has 
twice  the  area  of  that  attached  to  the  Prospect  Park,  of  Brooklyn,  for 
military  exercise  on  a  scale  unprecedented  in  this  city  or  its  vicinity  will 
attract  tens  of  thousands  of  spectators  on  special  occasions.  Here  it  will  be 
possible  to  manoeuvre  as  many  as  ten  thousand  men  of  all  arms,  and  their 
movements  can  be  witnessed  by  over  a  hundred  thousand  spectators  from 
the  hills  which  bound  and  overlook  the  northern  extremity  of  this  extended 
plain,  while  from  the  heights  b3yond  the  westerly  side  of  tha  park  double 
that  number  can  see  the  brilliant  spectacle,  as  infantry,  cavalry  and 
artillery  go  through  their  exercises  or  are  arrayed  in  mimic  battle. 


54  THE  ISEW  PARKS. 

REVOLUTIONARY  REMINISCENCES. 

From  the  commanding  eminence  known  ns  Vault  Hill,  and  which  has  an 
elevation  of  over  a  hundred  feet  above  the  parade  ground,  an  extended 
view  of  the  park  is  presented  on  every  side.  On  its  summit  is  the  ceme- 
tery from  which  it  has  obtained  its  name.  Within  the  walled  inclosure 
are  the  vaults  in  which  repose  the  remains  of  several  members  of  the  his- 
toric family  who  are  still  in  occupation  of  the  property  and  from  whose 
keeping  it  will  pass,  before  the  close  of  another  year,  into  the  possession  of 
the  city  with  all  the  land  now  and  hereafter  to  be  known  as  Van  Cortlandt 
Park,  the  title  conferred  upon  it  by  legislative  enactment.  But  the  vaults 
served  another  purpose  than  that  of  a  place  of  interment,  for  in  February, 
1776,  the  Augustus  Van  Cortlandt  of  that  day,  who  held  the  office  of 
"Clerk  of  New  York,"  reported  to  the  Committee  of  Safety  that  for  their 
security  he  had  "  removed  the  public  records  to  Vonkers,"  and  as  the  safest 
place  of  deposit  they  were  secreted  there,  but  it  is  supposed  that  they  were 
subsequently  found  by  the  British  when  in  occupation  of  this  part  of  the 
park  and  returned  to  the  city. 

This  portion  of  the  park  is  rich  in  revolutionary  reminiscences  and  may 
well  be  regarded  as  an  object  of  special  interest.  Indeed  this  whole  sec- 
tion of  the  city  and  its  vicinity,  forming  the  23d  and  31th  Wards  and  the 
town  of  Yonkers,  as  well  as  the  territory  stretching  beyond  the  Bronx  and 
over  to  the  Sound,  witnessed  many  a  scene  of  fierce  (  ncounter  and  san- 
guinary strife,  and  every  acre  of  it  may  be  truly  said  to  have  been  trav- 
ersed and  fought  over  by  the  contending  forces.  From  Vault  Hill  to  Kings- 
bridge  the  tide  of  war  ebbed  to  and  fro  with  varying  success  throughout 
the  long  seven  years'  struggle. 

THE  ANCIENT  MANSION  AND  MILL,. 

The  ritse  de  gruerrc  by  which  in  1781  Washington  deceived  the  British 
enemy  lying  at  Kingsbridge  while  he  withdrew  his  army  to  Yorktown, 
was  planned  and  successfully  carried  out  on  this  memorable  spot.  On  the 
summit  and  along  the  slopes  of  Vault  Hill  he  lighted  illusive  camp  fires 
and  ostentatiously  displayed  the  few  remaining  troops,  while  the  great 
body  of  his  forces  were  on  the  march,  under  his  immediate  command,  to 
join  Lafayette  at  Yorktown,  where  British  supremacy  received  its  death 
blow.  When  in  17S3,  at  the  close  of  the  war,  Washington  revisited  this 
place,  he  made  his  headquarters  in  the  Van  Cortlandt  mansion,  where  he 
remained  three  days  awaiting  the  evacuation  of  New  York  by  the  enemy's 
troops.  It  will  not  detiact  from  the  historic  interest  attaching  to  the 
building  to  add  that  it  was  also  occupied,  and  for  a  much  longer  period, 
by  the  colonel  of  the  Hessian  Yagers,  for,  the  truth  must  be  told,  it  was 
more  frequently  in  the  possession  of  the  red  coats  than  of  the  patriots. 
Such  a  relic  must  be  preserved  as  one  of  the  most  valuable  landmarks 
within  the  park.  Then  there  is  also  the  ancient  mill— over  a  century  old — 
which  stands  at  the  southern  extremity  of  the  lake,  nestling  in  the  deep 
shadow  of  towering  elms,  and  which  will  long  be  a  favorite  resort  of  the 
lovers  of  the  picturesque,  for  the  retired  nook  in  which  it  stands  is  one  of 
the  most  beautiful  in  the  whole  range  of  the  park.     This  same  old  mill 


CD 


THE  NEW  PARKS.  57 

served  both  the  friends  and  foes  of  American  liberty,  both  red  coats  and 
Continentals,  as  it  changed  owners  in  the  varying  fortunes  of  the  contest. 
At  this  point  the  overflow  of  the  lake  forms  a  miniature  cascade  and 
rapids,  which  flaw  between  banks  bordered  with  great  trees,  as  the  stream 
courses  on  its  way  to  j  An  the  waters  of  the  Spuyten  Duyvil,  a  mile  off  in 
the  valley  below.  The  Van  Cortlandt  Station  of  the  New  York  & 
Northern  Railroad,  which  passes  through  the  park,  is  within  a  few  hundred 
feet  of  the  old  mill  and  cascade,  and  as  he  leaves  the  station  the  visitor 
finds  himself  in  one  of  the  most  exquisite  of  rural  scsnes.  Here  he  sees  in 
all  their  perfection— perfect  in  being  wholly  free  from  art — 

"The  wonders  of  the  lane," 
as  wondrous,  if  not  more  wondrous,  than  those  of  which  Elliott  so  sweetly 
sung. 

SYLVAN   SCENERY. 

All  that  art  has  done  for  the  Central,  and  it  has  done  everything  for  it, 
can  show  nothing  comparable  with  this  lovely  vista.  Through  the  foliage 
of  great  ancestral  trees  the  lake  is  visible,  and  the  sound  of  falling  water 
mingled  with  the  melody  of  birds  greets  the  ear  as  you  cross  the  rustic 
bridge  that  spans  the  brook.  This  is  literally  the  home  of  the  birds  and 
"  the  trees  are  full  of  song "  the  whole  summer  through.  For  them  the 
much-abused  pugnacious  sparrow  has  no  terrors.  Robins,  blackbirds, 
thrushes,  orioles,  catbirds,  bobolinks,  all  build  their  nests 

'"Under  the  prreen  roofs  of  trees," 
and  raise  their  ynung  fearless  of  the  foreign  foe.  The  thick,  tangled  sedge 
and  dense  shrubbery  that  hide  the  Mosholu  as  it  flows  into  the  lake  are  still 
the  resort  of  wood  duck,  woodcock  and  quail,  for  here  the  park  is  a  wilder- 
ness, and  in  both  brook  and  lake  the  "  lusty  trcut"  is  still  to  be  found  by 
the  skillful  angler,  a  testimony  more  truthful  than  iron-clad  aflilavit  of  the 
purity  of  the  water.  The  writer  has  in  his  possession  a  well  preserved 
speckled  two-pounder,  caught  near  the  mill  and  at  which  point  an  occa- 
sional capture  is  still  made. 

No  danger  from  malaria  here,  as  the  lake  is  supplied  by  the  ever 
flowing  Mosholu,  which  still  holds  its  Indian  title  despite  its  more  common 
name  of  Tibbitt's  Brook.  The  lake  is  not  wholly  dependent,  however,  for 
its  supply  from  this  source,  for  it  has  springs  of  its  own,  and  it  receives 
also  the  drainage  from  the  range  of  hills  on  either  side.  At  slight  expense 
its  area  can  be  almost  doubled  and  the  brook,  freed  from  the  rank  growth 
by  which  it  is  concealed,  can  be  made  a  most  attractive  feature  in  tne 
landscape. 

A  PARK  CONTRAST— NEW  YORK  AND  PARIS. 

There  are  so-called  lakes  in  the  Central,  but  no  brook  or  rivulet,  and  in 
this  respect  the  Van  Cortlandt  has  a  decided  advantage.  In  the  Bronx  Park 
there  is  the  stream  from  which  it  has  its  name,  but  the  Bronx  is  more  than  a 
brook,  and  in  some  of  the  histories  in  which  it  is  described  it  is  dignified  with 
the  title  of  river.  A  brook,  however,  is  an  attraction  %fhich  very  few 
parks  possess,  and  it  is  deemed  so  essential  in  the  plans  of  the  French  land- 


58  THE  NEW  PARKS. 

scape  gardeners  that  they  have  connected  the  lakes  in  the  Bois  de  Vincennes, 
which  has  twice  the  area  of  Van  Cortlandt  Park,  by  an  artificial  stream 
three  miles  long.  In  the  Boii  de  Boulogne  the  lakes  are  filled  from  artesian 
wells,  and  there  is  still  sufficient  to  keep  a  cascade  40  feet  high  in  constant 
operation.  Like  the  lakes,  the  cascade  is  also  the  work  of  human  hands, 
but  nature  is  so  closely  copied  that  the  imitation  might  well  deceive  the 
inexperienced.  Then  there  are  islands  in  the  lakes  and  restaurants  on  the 
islands,  and  on  the  "  mainland  "  a  theatre,  a  concert  hall,  a  race  course  — 
the  celebrated  Longchamps — ^and  no  end  of  entertainments  and  amuse- 
ments for  the  young,  who  appaar  to  have  been  the  object  of  special  regard 
in  the  designs  of  the  great  Paris  playgrounds.  The  recreations  and  taste 
of  all  classes  have  been  CDnsulted  in  the  arrangement  and  plan  both  of  the 
Bois  de  Boulogne  and  the  Bois  de  Vincennes,  which,  in  addition  to  a  race 
course,  a  spacious  parade  ground,  a  rifle  range  and  a  model  farm,  has 
several  meadow  tracts  where  the  children  can  enjoy  themselves  without 
hindrance  or  thrtats  of  fines  atd  psnaltics.  There  is,  it  is  true,  abundant 
space  within  these  two  grand  parks,  the  combined  area  of  which  is  nearly 
as  large  as  that  of  all  our  parts  i.orth  and  south  of  the  Harlem;  but  there 
is  no  good  reason  why  we  cannot  reproduce  in  Van  Cortlandt  and  Pelham 
parks  all  the  attractions  of  the  two  great  pleasure  grounds  of  the  French 
capital.  Our  Park  Department  can  profit  by  the  lessons  taught  by  the 
municipality  of  Paris,  which.derives  a  large  revenue  from  the  leases  and 
privileges  granted  to  the  keepers  of  restaurants  and  the  caterers  to  the 
various  amusements  within  these  and  other  public  grounds. 

With  all  the  attractions  of  the  Paris  parks— and  no  expense  has  been 
spared  in  their  embellishment— they  are  inferior  to  the  parks  beyond  the 
Harlem  in  natural  beauty  and  in  the  picturesqua  character  of  their  sur- 
roundings. Neither  of  them  can  boast  of  a  valley  like  that  of  the  Mosholu, 
witli  gently  sloping  hills,  crowned  in  parts  wiLh  dcnsj  woods,  in  which  grow 
nearly  all  the  varieties  native  to  this  section  of  the  country — many  kinds  of 
oaks,  stately  elms,  broad-leaved  catalpas,  evergreen  pine  and  cedar,  the 
hardy  locust,  the  drooping  willow,  the  umbrageous  chestnut,  the  graceful 
maple,  the  valuable  walnut,  the  wild  cherry,  and  apple  and  plum,  and  the 
wild  grapevine — all  are  to  be  found  within  the  bounds  of  Van  Cort- 
landt Park. 

MEMOKIES  OF  THE  PAST. 

Gkiious,  indeed,  the  revolutionary  memories  of  this  locality,  but  it  is 
so  crowded  with  incidents  of  "the  days  that  tried  men's  souls"  that  four 
large  volumes  have  already  been  filled,  and  there  are  doubtless  others  yet 
to  come. 

Looking  from  Vault  Hill  in  a  northeasterly  direction  the  eye  rests  on  an. 
opening  in  the  woods  which  is  known  as  "  the  Indian  Field,"  and  there,  in 
one  grave,  unmarked  by  memorial  stone,  lie  the  remains  of  eighteen  of  the 
forty  Stockbridge  Indians,  steadfast  allies  of  the  patriots,  who  fell  beneath 
British  bayonets  and  bullets.  From  this  point  there  is  an  extended  view  of 
the  Palisades  of  the  Hudson  over  to  the  west,  and  here  an  observatory  may 
one  day  be  ez-ected  which  will  still  further  extend  the  view  and  bring  out 


THE  NEW  PARKS.  59 

in  fuller  relief  the  charms  of  the  surrounding  scenery,  f^r  Vault  Hill  com- 
mands not  only  a  view  of  the  whole  park  but  of  the  great  range  of  country 
of  which  it  may  be  regarded  as  the  centre. 

Immediately  to  the  south,  about  a  quarter  of  a  mile  awav,  stands  the 
square  stone  mansion  of  the  Van  Cortlandts  of  Kingsbridge,  of  which 
Hon.  A.  Van  Cortlandt  and  his  family  are  the  present  occupants.  It  is  in 
itself  an  antique  relic,  a  piece  of  architectural  brie  ^-brac  of  the  last 
century,  and,  as  the  quaint  numerals  carved  in  the  stone  tablet  on  its 
front  informs  the  spectator,  it  was  built  in  the  year  1748.  And  that  old 
tablet,  if  it  could  speak,  could  tell  many  a  tale  of  fierce  and  sanguinary 
strife  that  took  place  either  here  or  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  this  now 
peaceful  and  lovely  scene;  for  Kingsbridge,  less  than  a  mile  to  the  south, 
constituted  the  barrier  of  the  British  lines,  and  this  was  "the  debatable 
ground." 

An  order  of  Congress,  dated  May  25, 1775,  directed  "  that  a  post  be  imme- 
diately taken  and  fortified  at  or  near  Kingsbridge,  and  that  the  ground  be 
chosen  v.ith  a  particular  view  to  prevent  the  communication  between  the 
city  of  New  York  and  the  country  from  being  interrupted  by  land. "  Here 
the  outposts  of  both  armies  had  frequent  encounters,  and  the  records  of 
many  a  deadly  struggle  are  found  in  the  bullets,  bayonets,  fragments  of 
muskets  and  other  relics  which  are  occasionally  turned  up  in  the  work  of 
excavation.  In  fact,  as  already  stated,  all  the  country  round,  from  and  at 
times  below  Kingsbridge  up  to  and  beyocd  White  Plains,  and  from  the 
Hudson  to  the  Sound,  was  one  field  of  strife  between  the  patriot  forces 
under  Washington,  Ro.ihambeau,  Greene,  Van  Cortlandt,  Heath,  Parsons, 
Clinton,  Thomas,  Lasher,  Graham,  Berthier,  De  Lauzun,  De  Chastellux, 
Deuxpoints,  De  Noailles,  De  Beville,  Du  Portout,  Paulding,  Nicholas, 
Swartwout  and  Armand,  and  the  British  under  Howe,  Knyphausen,  Cath- 
cart,  Tarleton,  De  Lancey,  Simcoe,  Emmerick,  Van  Wurmb  and  Rogers. 

But  the  most  protracted  and  determined  fighting  was  done  at  and  around 
Fort  Independence,  erected  on  the  seventy-five-acre  farm  of  General  Mont- 
gomerv,  and  within  a  few  hundred  yards  of  his  dwelling.  Portions  of  the 
fort  still  remain  on  Tetards  Hill,  which  can  be  seen  from  the  Van  Cortlandt 
mansion.  As  to  forts,  every  hill  which  afforded  a  commanding  view  of 
the  coimtry  was  crowned  by  some  sort  of  defense,  for  both  the  American 
and  English  generals  regarded  the  control  and  possession  of  this  particular 
section  of  the  utmost  importance  as  a  means  of  keeping  open  com- 
munication. 

VAN   CORTLANDT  VISTAS. 

But,  as  has  been  stated,  the  history  of  this  locality  is  crowded  with 
reminiscences  of  the  Revolution,  and  to  the  space  within  Van  Cortlandt 
Park  belongs  a  liberal  share  of  those  glorious  memories.  It  has,  therefore, 
a  distinctive  value  apart  Irom  that  of  its  natural  attractions  as  a  public 
pleasure  ground,  and  with  these  it  has  been  most  liberally  endowed.  On 
every  side  are  views  deserving  of  the  best  efforts  of  the  artist,  and  whether 
on  hill  tops  or  in  the  valleys,  on  the  lake,  in  the  lane  or  along  the  brook, 
some  new  beauty  greets  the  eye  as  the  visitor  changes  his  position.     From 


60  THE  NEW  PARKS. 

the  door  cf  Iho  ancient  mansion  with  its  grotesque  corbels  and  quaint 
devices  is  seen  the  valley  of  the  Spuyten  Duyvil  with  its  flanking  hills  and 
occasional  glimpses  of  the  great  city  to  the  south.  To  the  west  is  Riverdale, 
the  site  of  many  a  beautiful  villa  set  in  the  midst  of  highly  cultivated 
grounds.  Less  than  ten  minutes  by  rail  is  the  towering  and  graceful  struct- 
ure of  High  Bridge,  a  continuation  of  the  Croton  Aqueduct,  which  passes 
directly  through  the  Van  Cortlandt  Park  from  north  to  south.  Another 
aqueduct  is  now  in  process  of  construction,  and  will  be  completed  this  year, 
on  a  line  nearly  parallel  with  the  first,  but  at  a  depthof  a  hundred  feet  and 
more  at  some  points  below  the  surface,  and  the  direction  of  which  is  indi- 
cated by  the  air  shafts  constructed  at  intervals  along  its  course. 

The  extensive  and  wide-spreading  lawn  in  front  of  the  dwelling  descends  by 
a  series  of  terraces  into  the  valley  below,  a  relic  of  the  old  Dutch  style  of 
landscape  gardening.  This  will  be  one  of  the  favorite  resorts  in  the  park, 
and  the  building  itself,  with  its  antique  interior  decorations,  its  curious  old 
parlor,  fireplace  and  carved  mantel  are  deserving  of  more  than  a  passing 
glance.  To  the  east  of  the  mansion  there  are  several  fine  evergreens  and  a 
line  of  grand  old  chestnuts  that  were  planted  nearly  a  century  ago  and 
that  now  sentinel  and  shade  the  path  that  runs  through  the  meadow  to  the 
railroad  station  beyond. 

A  VOICE   FROM  FAIRMOCNT. 

In  the  acquisition  of  this  park  the  city  has  indeed  secured  what  will  be  to 
the  present  and  future  generations  "a  thing  of  beauty"  and  "a  joy  for- 
ever.'' To  this,  as  well  as  to  the  Bronx  and  Pelham  parks,  the  glowing 
words  of  the  Philadelphia  Park  Commissioners,  in  speaking  of  their  own 
magnificent  Fairmount,  may  with  equal  force  and  truth  be  applied  :  "By 
Philadelphia  having  the  park  in  contrast  with  Philadelphia  without  the 
park  2ve  shall  soon  have  a  vahie  added  to  our  real  estate  and  taxable 
resources  more  than  commensurate  tvith  the  purchase  money  of  all  the 
park,  and  that  value  ivill  increase  indefinitely.  In  this  way  the  city  will 
be  more  than  a  second  time  requited  for  her  whole  outlay.  Conceive  of 
our  approximate  millions  and  coming  millions  as  being  without  Fairmount 
Park.  Can  any  human  imagination  begin  to  estimate  the  sum  of  human 
health  and  happiness  that  would  be  lost  to  Philadelphia,  Pennsylvania— the 
•world  !  Who  could  make  the  trial  to  run  the  parallel  of  the  value  of  $10,- 
000,000,  as  the  price  of  the  park,  invested  and  running  at  interest  for  the 
city  with  the  successive  generations  of  her  millions  of  paople  without  the 
culture,  and  health,  and  happiness  of  the  pirk,  and  not  feel  humiliation, 
and,  withal,  being  shocked  at  the  meanness  of  the  suggestion  ?  Money  is  a 
sacred  trust,  indeed,  for  its  potency  for  good  ;  but  life,  health  and  happi- 
ness and  gratitude  to  God  are  worth  more  than  all  hoarded  wealth.  We 
have,"  say  the  Fairmount  Commissioners  in  a  burst  of  resolute  defiance  to 
those  who  had  been  conspiring  to  deprive  their  fellow  citizsns  of  this  great 
treasure,  "  we  have  and  will  keep  this  park  ;  we  will  improve  and  love  it  ; 
it  shall  be  our  pride  and  perpetual  enjoyment." 

And  so  say  we  of  our  still  more  beautiful  parks:  we  have  and  will  keep 
them,  and  they  shall  be  our  pride  and  perpetual  enj  -)yment. 


o 


o 
o 


THE  NEW"  PARKS.  63 

The  boundaries  of  Vau  Corblanit  as  fired  by  the  act  begia  at  the  inter- 
section of  the  easterly  line  of  Broadway  with  the  northerly  line  of  the  city 
of  New  York,  running  thence  easterly  along  the  northerly  line  or  boundary 
of  the  city  of  New  York  to  the  incersectioa  of  said  line  with  the  westerly 
line  of  Mount  Vernon  avenue;  thence  southerly  along  the  westerly  line  of 
Mount  Vernon  avenue  to  the  junction  of  said  westerly  line  of  Mount  Ver- 
non avenue  with  the  northerly  line  of  Grand  (or  Willard)  avenue ;  thence 
westerly  along  said  north ?rly  line  of  Grand  (Willard)  avenue,  crossing 
Jerome  avenue  to  the  westerly  line  of  Jerome  avenue ;  thence  along  said 
westerly  line  of  Jerome  avenue,  in  a  southeasterly  and  southerly  direction 
to  its  junction  with  the  northerly  line  of  Gunbill  road;  from  thence  westerly 
along  the  northerly  line  of  Gunhillroad,  folio  iving  its  windings,  and  extend- 
ing on  said  line  to  a  point  two  hundred  and  seventy-five  (.115)  feet  easterly 
and  at  right  angles  from  the  easterly  boundary  of  the  Croton  Aqueduct  right 
of  way ;  from  thence  crossing  the  Gunhill  road  at  right  angles  for  the  full 
width  of  said  Gunhill  road;  from  thence  in  a  straight  line  southerly  of  west 
to  a  point  on  the  easterly  side  of  Broadway  aforesaid,  ten  feet  southerly  of 
the  bridge  over  Tibbitt's  Brook  on  said  Broadway;  from  thence  along  the 
easterly  line  of  Broadway  in  a  northerly  direction,  following  its  windings 
to  the  place  of  beginning. 

RARE   SYLVAN  BEAUTIES. 

The  Bronx  Park  has  an  area  of  six  hundred  and  fifty-three  acres  lying 
on  both  sides  of  the  "romantic  Bronx"  and  extending  from  West  Farms 
to  Williamsbridge.  It  is  two  miles  long  and  its  width  varies  from  half  a 
mile  to  three-quarters. 

It  would  be  ditficult  to  do  justice  to  the  exquisite  loveliness  of  this  tract 
without  seeming  to  exaggerate,  for  the  character  of  the  scenery  is  so 
varied  that  every  step  is  a  surprise  and  the  artist  and  "the  wayfaring  man 
might  love  to  linger  there."  It  is  now  in  the  height  of  its  glory,  in  full 
summer  garb  of  green,  "  the  livery  thit  Nature  loves  to  wear,"  and  those 
who  have  never  seen  it  should  go  now  and  satisfy  themselves  as  to  the 
value  of  the  domain  the  city  has  secured  and  its  suitableness  for  park 
purposes.  The  Bronx  runs  through  it  from  north  to  south,  not  confined 
between  parallel  banks,  but  bordering  curves,  forming  at  intervals  wide 
lake-like  reaches,  then  closing  in  until  they  are  scarcely  fifty  feet  apart, 
where  its  waters  are  interrupted  by  the  Lydig  Dam,  over  which  they  are 
precipitated  in  one  broad  foaming  cascade  that  adds  a  new  charm  to  the 
landscape.  The  banks  rise  to  the  height  of  fifty,  eighty  and  even 
ninety  feet ;  in  some  places  abrupt  and  precipitous,  in  others  easily  sur- 
mounted. Gigantic  trees,  centuries  old,  crown  these  summits,  while 
great  moss  and  ivy -covered  rocks  project  here  and  there  at  difTerent  heights 
above  the  surface  of  the  river,  increasing  the  wildness  of  the  scene.  Among 
those  is  a  grand  old  tree  that  towers  to  the  height  of  over  one  hundred  and 
fifty  feet,  a  veritable  monarch  of  the  forest,  which  that  predatory  king 
and  tree  robber  celebrated  by  Marco  Polo  would  have  sacrificed  half  his 
army  to  secure.     It  stands  apart  in  solitary  magnificence  and  has  been 


C4  THE   'SEW  PARKS. 

know  to  many  past  and  will  contiaue  to  be  known  to  many  future  genera- 
tions as  De  Lancey's  ancient  pine. 

"Where  gentle  Bronx,  clear,  winding,  flows. 
The  shadowy  banks  between. 
Where  blossomed  bell  or  wilding  rose 
Adorns  the  brightest  green, 
******* 

Stands  high  in  solitary  state. 
De  Lancey's  ancient  pine." 

It  is  not  only  a  conspicuous  and  beautiful  object  but  it  is  interesting  in  a 
historical  point  of  view,  and  immortalized  in  verse  it  acquires  added 
interest  for  the  poetic  imagination. 

AN  iceberg's  gift. 

But  De  Lancey's  ancient  pine  is  not  the  only  feature  of  special  interest  in 
the  Bronx  Park,  for  it  possesses  in  a  huge  boulder  (evidently  deposited  on 
its  present  resting  place  during  the  world's  glacial  period)  an  object  of 
peculiar  value  and  attraction.  This  great  stone,  weighing  i)robably  a 
hundred  tons,  is  so  balanced  upon  the  rock  upon  which  it  was  originally 
deposited  by  the  melting  of  some  huge  iceberg,  from  whose  frozen  embrace 
it  was,  countless  ages  ago,  released,  that  by  an  ordinary  effort  of  human 
strength  it  can  be  set  rocking  to  aad  fro  on  its  immovable  base. 

"Like  that  stone  of  the  Druid  race. 
Which  the  gentlest  touch  at  once  sets  moving." 

Could  such  an  attraction  be  duplicated  by  the  most  skillful  appliance  of 
man's  ingenuity?  Could  engineering  skill  poise  it  so  deftly,  balance  it  so 
truly,  and  hold  it  so  inexorably  ? 

THE  artists'  haunt. 

The  Bronx  Park  has  a  great  attraction   for  artists,  for  it  affords  such 
opportunities  of  studying  effects;  it  presents  such  varieties  of  color,  such 
mingling  of  light  and  shade,  such  blending  of  huas,  such  manifold  forms  of 
growth  and  such  opposite  tjpjs  of  beauty,  f^'om  the  stately  oak  to  the 
"  Creeping  ivy  that  flings  its  graces 
About  the  lichentd  recks," 

that  it  is  in  fact  a  scenic  reservoir  to  which  they  love  to  resort  for  inspira- 
ticci  and  artistic  "  points."  Little  wonder  that  they  got  up  a  separate 
petition  to  the  Legislature  in  favor  of  the  Park  bill  of  1S81,  for  to  them  it 
appealed  in  a  special  manner.  To  that  petition  was  appended  eighty  of  the 
highest  names  in  the  art  circles  of  New  York,  and  headed  by  Bierstadt, 
Huntington  and  others  equally  well  known  to  fame. 

The  Bronx  was  at  one  time  a  considerable  stream,  draining  the  southern 
part  of  Westchester  County,  and  its  winding  course  is  accurately  marked 
out  on  a  quaint  old  map  preserved  in  the  office  of  the  Secretary  of 
State  at  Albany.  Its  volume  of  water  has  been  considerably  diminished 
by  tapping  it  for  the  new  aqueduct,  l.ut  there  should  still  be  sufficient 
to  keep  the  river  clear  and  to  prevent  a  stagnation  in  the  flow.  Failure  to 
attend  to  that  vital  point  would,  by  con/erciug  the  Bi'onx  into  a  public 
nuisance,  destroy  its  beauty  and  its  uief  ulness  together.     To  prevent  th& 


00 


T) 


3- 

(D 

■J} 

<" 

O 


THE  NEW  PARKS.  6T 

possibility  of  such  a  misfortune  the  upper  waters  of  the  Bronx  should  be 
included  in  the  park  system  as  soon  as  Westchester  is  within  the  city 
limits  in  accordance  with  the  original  plan  of  annexation.  That  would 
secure  the  waters  along  many  miles  of  its  course.  Future  danger  from  such 
a  source  provided  against,  T^'^hat  a  magnificent  parkway  could  be  laid  out 
along  its  banks. 

THAT  BRITISH   FLEET. 

The  Bronx  formerly  abounded  in  trout,  but  these  have  given  way  to  the 
black  bass;  its  bordering  woods  were  full  of  game,  and  in  the  "  sequestered 
leafy  glades"  the  feathered  minstrels  pipe  their  sweetest  lays.  Many  a 
gallant  deed  has  been  done  and  many  a  fierce  fight  fought  in  its  vicinity — 
the  very  atmosphere  of  the  place  is  thick  with  Revolutionary  memories. 
It  might  have  been  the  scene  of  a  sanguinary  naval  battle  that  would  have 
painted  its  banks  red,  but  for  that  peace-making  participle  that  hath 
"  much  virtue  in  it,"  "if"  it  had  only  been  big  enough.  For  Sir  William 
Howe  ordered  the  commander  of  the  British  fieet  lying  in  New  York  up 
the  Bronx,  "  to  meander  with  his  fleet  and  his  guns  and  all  that;"  which 
the  commander  would  have  done,  says  Mr.  William  Allan  Butler — 
"If  only  the  Bronx  had  been  bigger." 

The  three  large  parks  in  the  new  park  system,  as  elsewhere  stated,  have 
an  individuality  as  marked  as  that  which  distinguishes  one  man  from 
another.  Each  has  its  characteristic  excellences,  its  distinguishing  pecu- 
liarities, and  what  we  may  call  its  physiognomical  traits.  The  park 
by  the  Sound  has  a  character  all  its  own;  it  is  unique  in  position,  and  to 
that  fact  it  owes  its  pre-eminence.  Van  Cortlandfc  has  its  magnificent 
parade  ground;  in  itself  an  attraction  that  would  be  felt  as  far  as  the 
Battery;  its  wide  reaches,  its  running  brook,  its  magnificent  views,  its 
ancestral  trees  and  its  terraced  garden;  and  the  Bronx  has  a  picturesque 
loveliness  that  satisfies  but  never  satiates.  As  said  before,  it  is  the  haunt 
of  artists,  for  here  they  can  find  solitude  profound  enough  to  satisfy  Zim- 
mermann  himsslf ,  and  scenes  as  romantic  as  any  in  the  Adirondack  wilder- 
ness. And  this  within  less  than  a  half -hour's  drive  of  th3  Harlem  River, 
while  New  Yorkers  scour  tha  Continent  and  cross  the  ocean  in  search  of 
beautj  !  And  we  laugh  at  Mrs.  Jellaby  wh a  could  sea  nothing  nearer  than 
Africa ! 

A  SCHOOL  OF  BOTANY. 

No  better  place  could  be  selected  for  a  model  botanical  garden  t  an 
Bronx  Park,  and  no  better  use  could  ba  made  of  any  of  the  parks  than 
to  make  them  subserve  educational  purposes,  practical  schools  of  hor- 
ticulture, zoology,  arboriculture,  etc.,  where  children  oould  learn  with- 
out studying,  acquire  knowledge  without  opening  a  book,  and  where 
there  could  be  levied  "a  tax  of  profit  from  their  very  play."  A  dry 
botanical  catalogue  of  names  and  facts  might  be  committed  to  memory 
and  held  retentively,  but  it  would  not  arouse  interest  nor  stimu- 
late observation  like  the  flower,  shedding  its  perfume  on  the  air,  or  the 
stately  tree  with  its  multitudinous  leaves  rustling  in  the  summer  breeze. 
And  no  representative  of  animal  life  ever  gave  a  boy,  or  girl,  such  pleasure 


68  THE  NEW  PARKS. 

as  one  glimpse  of  the  same  animal  in  motion  or  repose.  What  they  have 
read  may  be  forgotten;  what  they  have  seen  remains  impressed  on  the 
memory. 

Philadelphia  has  a  magnificent  Botanical  Garden  in  Fairmount  Park,  to 
the  maintenance  and  extension  of  which  her  citizens  contribute  with 
praiseworthy  generosity.  In  one  year  alone  1,000  plants,  many  of  them 
rare  and  costly  specimens,  and  $6,500  were  contributed.  Who  imagines 
that  our  citizans  would  display  less  generosity  or  less  public  spirit  ?  Their 
donations  to  the  Museum  of  Art  and  to  the  public  libraries  is  conclusive 
on  that  point.  Still,  in  spite  of  our  municipal  pride  and  civic  esprit  cle 
corps,  we  must  admit  that  ia  the  Fairmount  Park  Association,  a  society  of 
citizans  numbering  over  a  thousand,  who  contribute  annually  a  certain 
sum  for  the  adornment  of  the  grounds  and  for  embellishing  them  with 
valuable  works  of  art,  Philadelphia  has  taken  a  step  far  in  advance  of  the 
Empire  City. 

In  San  Francisco  the  park  authorities  devote  considerable  space  and 
attention  to  rare  and  tropical  plants  and  have  succeeded  in  raising  from 
seed  the  gigantic  water  lily  of  South  America,  the  "  Victoria  Regia," 
whose  huge  circular  leaves  measure  twenty-three  feet  ia  circumference. 
In  Boston  an  Arboretum  has  been  added  to  the  park  system,  which  is  com- 
mended to  the  people  as  "  a  museum  of  living  plants  in  which  every  tree 
and  shrub  capable  of  withstanding  the  climate  of  Massachusetts  is  to  find 
its  appropriate  place,"  "  as  a  school  of  forestry  and  arboriculture,"  and  as 
"a  scientific  station  for  investigation  into  the  relations  of  forests  to  cli- 
mate and  tha  fl^w  of  rivers,  and  into  the  best  methods  of  forest  reproduc- 
tion and  management."  Sach  an  institution  here  would  be  of  incalcu- 
lable bansfit,  for  it  would  arouse  public  interest  in  the  subject  of  forestry 
and  cinssqaently  draw  attention  to  th3  rapid  destruction  of  the  woods  of 
the  Adirondacks,  which  as  a  piece  of  blended  vandalism  and  folly  it  would 
be  hard  to  equal. 

AN  nUPORTANT  QUESTION. 

Such  an  institution  would  teach  the  true  value  of  trees,  show  that  they 
had  a  higher  mission  to  fulfil  than  beautifying  the  landscape  or  affording 
grateful  shade  to  the  exhausted  traveler ;  that  they  added  to  the  fertility  of 
our  soil  and  increased  thi  fl)w  of  our  rivers,  and  thus  made  commerce  and 
agriculture  their  debtors.  And  not  only  agriculture  and  commerce,  but 
chemistry,  medicine,  metallurgy,  mechanics  and  manufactures,  art  and 
science,  owe  to  them  not  a  few  of  their  triumphs  and  most  of  their  possi- 
bilities, 

"  I  feel,"  says  George  Sand,  adding  her  name  to  a  petition  of  the  French 
artists  for  the  protection  of  the  Forest  of  Fontainebleau,  '"that  the 
destruction  of  beautiful  forests  is  a  monstrous  proposition,  and  that  we 
have  no  right,  in  an  intellectual  or  hygienic  sense,  to  remove  large  trees 
from  a  public  domain.  They  are  as  sacred  as  the  fertilizing  clouds  with 
which  they  hold  incessant  communication;  they  ought  to  be  protected  and 
respected,  never  left  to  barbarous  caprice  nor  to  the  egotistic  want  of  the 
individual.     Beautiful  and  majestic,  even  in  their  decrepitude,  they  are  as 


THE  NEvV  PARKS.  69 

much  the  property  of  our  descendants  as  they  were  of  our  ancestors.  They 
are  eternal  ternples,  the  mighty  architecture  and  ornamental  foliation  of 
which  is  constantly  renewed ;  sanctuaries  of  silence  and  reverie,  where 
successive  generations  have  tho  right  t)  e,ssemble  fjr  meditation  and  for 
the  development  of  that  sense  of  grandeur  of  which  every  man  has  a 
consciousness  and  a  ncsd  in  the  depths  of  his  nature. " 

London  and  Paris  have  botanical  gardens  on  a  grand  scale,  that  of  Paris 
extending  over  twenty -two  acres,  exclusive  of  the  space  devoted  to  forest 
trees.  All  are  carefully  classified  and  ticketed,  the  poisonous  plants  in  one 
section,  the  medicinal  in  another,  the  bane  and  antidote  in  close  proximity. 

In  our  parks,  botanic  gardens,  arboretams,  zoological  gardens  and  any 
other  desirable  addenda  to  a  public  park,  could  be  stocked  with  far  less 
trouble  and  expense  than  those  in  European  capitals,  for  our  own  continent 
could  furnish  a  great  deal  that  is  most  rare  and  desirable  and  most  difficult 
to  procure  in  the  animal  or  vegetable  kingdom.  These,  of  course,  could 
be  arranged  as  the  gentlemen  in  charge  would  determine,  but  whether 
arranged  in  consonance  with  variable  geographical  boundaries  or  unvary- 
ing isothermal  lines,  they  would  teach  the  youthful  student  something 
worth  learning  and  something  he  would  hs  likely  to  remember. 

THE  RIGHT  THING  IN  THE  BIGHT  PLACE. 

In  the  new  parks  tliere  would  be  abundant  space  enough  for  these  different 
departments  without  crowding  out  the  people.  These  would  be  attractions 
not  encroachments,  and  according  to  their  different  tastes  some  would  seek 
one  and  some  the  other ;  some  hie  to  the  bear  pit,  some  to  the  lily  ponds  and 
some  to  the  deer  paddock.  But  whoever  has  noticed  how  rapidly  the  love 
of  flowers  is  increasing  among  our  people,  growing  stronger  and  spreading 
wider  every  year,  must  admit  that  a  bDtanical  garden  worthy  of  the  name 
would  be  the  most  popular  department  in  a  park,  for  it  would  charm  alike 
the  refined  and  the  uncultivated,  the  old  and  young,  the  rich  and  the  poor. 
It  requires  no  book  learning  to  admire  flowers,  they  were  admired  in  the 
Garden  of  Eden ;  they  are  admired  in  the  Jardin  des  Plantes.  A  grand 
botanical  garden  in  the  Bronx  Park  would  be  the  right  thing  in  the  right 
place.  Nothing  more  would  be  wanting  to  its  completeness.  Splendid 
specimens  of  sylviculture  on  every  side,  a  promenade  of  over  two  miles 
on  the  margin  of  a  river  that  equals  in  beauty  Fairmount's  famed  Wissa- 
kickon,  on  whose  charms  the  Philadelphia  Commissioners  dilate  in  terms 
not  only  eloquent  but  poetic.  And  yet  the  Bronx  has  all  the  attractions 
they  claim  for  their  Indian  stream  and  more;  wooded  slopes,  rocky  ravines, 
sequestered  glades,  banks  carpeted  with  vines,  miniature  mountains 
crowned  with  trees,  a  placid,  gurgling  river  that  precipitates  itself  over 
Lydig's  Dam  as  if  resenting  its  temporary  imprisonment  and  falls  a  broad, 
foaming  cascade  into  its  rocky  channel,  wh:re  after  a  time  it  recovers  its 
equanimity  and  goes  singing  over  pebbles  as  before.  They  lay  stress  on 
the  unbroken  quiet  "  that  broods  over  the  Wissahickon."  Why  1  wandering 
by  the  Bronx,  New  York  seems  leagues  away,  and  the  nineteenth  century 
yet  in  the  womb  ot  time.  Solitudo,  like  a  pervading  spirit,  reigns  through- 
out and  the  very  atmosphere  breaches  repose.     True,  "  the  murmurous 


W  THE  NEW  PARKS. 

sound  of  bees  "  is  heard  and  th3  musical  ripple  of  running  water  and  the 
wild,  sweet  songs  of  wood  birds  that  issue  from  the  green  gloom  of  trees, 
but 

"  Stillness  accompanied  by  sounds  so  sweet 
Charms  more  than  silence.'" 

No  wonder  that  artists  love  this  favored  spot.  Had  it  been  hidden  away 
in  the  heart  of  the  Adirondack?,  or  in  the  depths  of  the  Yosemite,  or  did 
the  Atlantic  roll  between  us  and  it,  we  would  have  known  all  about  it  long 
ago ;  we  would  have  journeyed  by  land  or  journeyed  by  sea  to  get  a 
glimpse  of  it,  but  the  curse  of  p.-opinquity  was  on  it— it  was  too  near.  If, 
as  has  been  proposed,  our  present  northern  boundary  should  be  pushed 
three  or  four  miles  further  into  Westchester  County,  a  still  more  extended 
line  of  the  Bronx  Park,  narrower  it  might  be,  should  be  secured  as  soon  as 
possible.  Thus  the  extension  of  the  park  northward  would  include  the 
upper  waters  of  the  Bronx.  That  done  the  river  could  be  made  the  line  of 
a  superb  parkway  and  form  a  connecting  link  with  another  pai'k,  which 
no  doubt  will  be  laid  out  north  of  the  present  boundary  hereafter. 

BOUNDARIES   OF  THE   PARK. 

The  metes  and  bounds  of  the  Bronx  Park  as  fixed  by  law  are  as  follows  : 
Beginning  at  a  point  in  the  Twenty- fourth  Ward  of  the  city  of  New  York, 
formed  by  the  junction  of  the  north  line  of  Samuel  street  and  the  west 
bank  of  the  Bronx  River  ;  from  thence  westerly  along  the  northerly  line  of 
Samuel  street  to  the  easterly  line  of  Bronx  street ;  from  thence  northerly 
along  said  easterly  line  of  Bronx  street  to  the  northerly  line  of  Ann  street  ; 
from  thence  westerly  along  the  northerly  liae  of  Ann  street  to  the  easterly 
line  of  Boston  road  ;  from  thence  northerly  along  said  easterly  line  of  the 
Boston  road  to  a  point  in  line  with  the  northerly  line  of  Kingsbridge  road  ; 
from  thence  westerly  along  the  northerly  line  of  Kingsbridge  road  to  the 
easterly  liae  of  the  Southern  Boulevard  ;  from  thence  northerly,  along 
and  following  the  easterly  line  of  the  Southern  Boulevard,  to  the  north- 
erly line  of  St.  John's  College  property  ;  from  thence,  crossing  the  South- 
ern Boulevard  and  following  the  northerly  boundary  of  the  St.  John's 
College  property  northwesterly,  to  the  eastoi  ly  lino  of  the  right  of  way  of 
the  New  York  &  Harlem  Railroad  Co. ;  from  thence  along  said  easterly 
line  of  said  right  of  way,  and  following  its  course  northeasterly  to  a 
point  about  three  hundred  (3'JO)  feet  northeasterly  of  the  northerly  line 
of  Water  street,  to  a  point  formed  by  the  junction  of  the  prolongation 
westward  of  the  northerly  line  of  Morris  street,  as  laid  down  on  a  parti- 
tion map  and  survey  made  by  Egbert  L.  Viele,  Civil  Engineer,  under  an 
order  of  the  Supreme  Court,  bearing  date  the  23d  day  of  August,  1869 ; 
from  thence  along  said  prolongation  of  the  northerly  line  of  Morris  street, 
crossing  the  Bronx  River  and  along  said  northerly  line  of  Morris  street,  to 
a  point  about  twenty  (20)  feet  easterly  of  the  eastern  line  of  Duncomb 
avenue,  as  shown  on  the  map  aforesaid ;  from  thence,  in  a  straight  line 
southerly,  and  nearly  parallel  to  and  east  of  Monroe  avenue,  as  shown  on 
said  map,  to  the  northwesterly  corner  of  land  formerly  belonging  to  John 
Hitchcock,  as  shown  on  said  map;  from  thence,  in  a  straight  line  south- 


o 


THE  NEW  PARKS.  73 

erly,  to  the  southeastern  corner  of  the  Lorillard  estate,  as  shown  on  map 
aforesaid;  thence  we  terly  along  the  southerly  boundary  of  the  Lorillard 
estate,  as  shown  on  said  map,  to  the  lands  belonging  to  the  Bronx 
Bleaching  Company ;  thence  southwesterly,  southerly  and  westerly,  along 
the  easterly  and  southerly  boundary  of  the  Bronx  Bleaching  Company,  to 
a  point  two  hundred  (TOO)  feet  easterly  of  the  Bronx  River;  from  thence 
southerly  and  parallel  with  the  general  line  of  the  Bronx  River,  crossing 
the  Boston  road,  to  its  southerly  line ;  thence  easterly  along  said  southerly 
line  of  Boston  road  about  five  hundred  and  twenty  (530)  feet ;  from  thence 
southerly,  and  parallel  with  the  general  courses  of  the  Bronx  River, 
and  conforming  thereto,  about  seven  hundred  (700)  feet  easterly  of  the 
general  eastern  line  thereof,  to  a  point  formed  by  such  line,  and  a  pro- 
longation of  the  southerly  line  of  Kingsbridge  road  as  now  existing  in 
the  Twenty-fourth  Ward  of  the  city  of  New  York,  between  the  Southern 
Boulevard  and  Bronx  street;  eastwardly  across  the  Bronx  River  to  the 
said  line,  as  drawn  parallel  to  the  general  course  of  the  Bronx  River,  as 
aforesaid ;  from  thence  in  a  straight  line  crossing  the  Bronx  River  to  the 
place  of  beginning. 

NEW   YORK'S  GREAT  SEASIDE  RESORT. 

In  the  inception  of  the  idea  of  the  new  parks  a  park  on  the  Sound  was 
regarded  not  only  as  a  prominent,  but  as  aa  indispensable  feature,  essential 
to  the  completion  of  the  whole  system.  On  the  first  map  published  of  the 
proposed  sites  it  not  only  had  a  place,  but  in  the  accompanying  descriotion 
it  was  stated  that  "  a  park  site  near  or  iacludins:  Hutchinson  River,  and  a 
little  to  the  south  of  New  Rochelle,  might  be  so  arranged  as  to  include  one 
or  more  of  the  islands  in  the  Sound  which  are  now  connected  with  the 
mainland  by  causeways." 

In  the  petition  which  accompanied  the  act  (chap.  253  of  1883)  the  special 
attention  of  the  I^egislature  was  directed  to  the  immediate  necessity  for  "a 
grand  park  with  a  water  front  on  Long  Island  Sound  ;  one  which  should 
be  the  people's  own,  a  resort  for  picnicers  and  excursionists,  a  place  where 
they  could  enjoy  the  pleasures  of  boating,  bathing,  fishing,  etc."  The 
advantage  of  such  a  park  was  strenuously  advocated  in  the  report  made  to 
the  Legislature  of  1884  by  the  commission  appointed  under  the  act  of  1883. 
In  this  report  it  was  stated  that  a  personal  inspection  had  been  made  of  the 
coastline  and  its  indentations  for  "the  most  suitable  ground  for  such  a 
park,  believing  that  this  growing  metropolis  ere  very  many  years  wUl 
embrace  four  or  even  five  millions  of  inhabitants,  and  the  citizens  of  the 
State  who  take  a  pride  and  an  interest  in  the  city's  prosperity  will  not 
much  longer  be  content  that  its  eastern  boundary  shall  be  defined  by  the 
slender  rivulet  of  the  Bronx ,  but  will  insist  rather  that  her  territory  shall 
embrace  all  the  land  below  her  northern  line,  lying  between  the  Hudson 
and  Long  Island  Sound — a  domain  that  seoms  marked  by  nature  for  the 
site  of  a  city,  which  we  hope  and  firmly  believe  is  to  be  one  of  the  proudest 
cities  of  the  world."  It  was  then  shown  that  "  the  improvements  now  in 
progress:  the  opening  through  the  Harlem  River,  by  the  federal  govern- 
ment, of  a  great  commercial  channel  between  the  East  and  the  North 


74  THE  NEW  PARKS. 

Rivers,  which  will  send  thither  the  centre  of  our  business  city ;  the  stupen- 
dous works  of  the  national  govarnment  for  the  removal  of  obstructions  in 
the  great  channel  connecting  the  Sound  with  the  ocean  ;  the  railroad  facil- 
ities which  the  last  few  years  have  developed  and  those  contemplated  in  the 
immediate  future  ;  the  improvement  of  the  streams  which  lead  into  the 
Sound  :  and  the  push  of  population  and  business  in  that  direction,  cannot 
but  have  the  effect  of  making  the  land  bordering  on  the  East  River  too 
indispensable  for  domestic,  commercial  and  manufacturing  purposes  to 
permit  the  abstraction  of  the  requisite  number  of  acres  required  for  the 
park,  and  to  interdict  the  location  of  such  pleasure  grounds  along  the  shore 
below  Throgg's  Neck." 

PELHAM  BAY  PARK. 

These  lands,  therefore,  being  destined  for  business  purposes  and  the 
bordering  land  above,  too  cultivated,  consequently  too  costly  to  be 
purchased  by  the  city  for  a  park,  the  commission  discovered  no  place  suita- 
ble until  they  reached  Pelham  Park  and  found  there  and  in  the  vicinity  a 
ready-made  park  fit  for  use  and  admirably  adapted  for  the  designed 
purpose.  The  waters  surrounding  it  are  pure  and  free  from  admixture 
with  the  sewage  of  a  large  city,  for  the  tide  from  the  Sound  sweeps  before 
it  all  contaminating  impurities  and  leaves  them  clear  and  sparkling. 

Pelham  Bay  Park  has  an  area  of  1,740  acres;  it  is  two  miles  and  a-half 
long  and  two  miles  wide,  and  its  coast  line  is  fully  nine  miles  ia  extent. 
Picturerque  inlets  and  bays  of  graceful  curve  indent  the  shore  and  the 
contiguous  islands  are  marked  by  the  same  uniformly  charming  irregu- 
larity of  outline.  The  sea  that  has  been  beating  on  these  shores  for 
centuries  has  done  its  work  well  and  fashioned  a  margin  that  satisfies  the 
imagination  of  the  poet  and  the  taste  of  the  painter. 

The  surface  of  the  park  is  varied  in  its  character :  green  uplands  and 
rolling  meadows  alternate  with  stretches  of  woodland  which  form  groves 
overarched  with  meeting  branches  through  which  the  mid-day  sun  sends 
tempered  rays.  Grassy  fields  slope  down  to  the  shore  and  shrubs  soften 
down  the  rugged  sides  of  hills  on  whose  crest  stand  stately  trees  that  were 
full  grown  before  the  Revolution. 

Pelham  Bay  Park  has  not  the  strikingly  picturesque  loveliness  of  the 
Bronx,  nor  the  tranquil  beauty  of  Van  Cortlandt,  but  it  has  a  charm  and 
an  attractiveness  all  its  own.  Then  it  has  its  incomparable  watery  annex, 
the  Sound!  And  what  a  panorama  that  presents!  Life  and  motion  every- 
where. The  waters  lashed  into  foam  by  the  breeze  or  seething  under  the 
prows  of  passing  steamers,  the  panting  tugs,  the  graceful  yachts,  the 
rowboats  and  the  rhythmic  stroke  of  oars,  fluttering  flags,  swelling 
sails,  the  joyous  music  of  excursion  parties  and  ozone  in  the  air — that's  a 
picture  worth  going  miles  to  see. 

Few  cities  in  the  Old  World  or  the  New  could  secure  such  a  domain  at  any 
price.  Those  inland  capitals  are  at  a  disadvantage  compared  with  New 
York.  We  have  in  our  other  parks  all  that  they  can  boast;  but  all  their 
means  and  energy,  all  their  taste  aad  skill  combined,  could  not  duplicate  a 
park  like  Pelham.     There  are  but  few  seaside  parks  in  the  world,  and  of 


CD 


THE  NEW"  PARKS.  77 

these  Stockholm's  is  the  only  one  deserving  of  being  even  mentionei  in 
connection  with  ours. 

OBJECTIONS  ANSWERED. 

Why  there  should  have  been  such  objection  to  this  park  is  a  marveL 
Every  man,  woman  and  child  longs  for  the  sea  in  the  summer  time.  It  is  a 
natural  craving.  Its  very  odor  is  invigorating,  and  a  dash  of  the  salt 
spray  is  an  actual  pleasure.  This  feeling  is  universal.  The  classes  as  well 
as  the  masses  share  it,  but  the  classes  can  gratify  it  at  any  time.  If 
the  mountain  does  not  come  to  Mahomet,  Mahomet  can  go  to  the  moun- 
tain ;  the  masses  cannot.  They  cannot  go  to  Newport  or  Long  Branch ; 
they  cannot  go  to  Trouville  or  Ostend.  To  them,  therefore,  a  seaside  park 
is  a  boon  and  a  blessing.  What  crowds  the  excursion  boats  ?  What  drives 
the  people  to  Glen  Island,  Oak  Point,  Locust  Grove  ?  What  but  the  desire 
to  get  away  as  far  as  possible  from  the  dull  routine  of  their  daily  lives. 
This  h  the  underlying,  though  it  may  be  the  unconscious,  motive  that 
impels  them  seaward.  Everything  aroundi  about  and  above  them  is  in  such 
strong  contrast  to  their  city  surroundings  that  life  assumes  a  new  aspect ; 
the  wearisome  monotony  of  their  work-a-day  week  is  broken  up;  their 
minds  are  quickened,  their  thoughts  freshened,  and  listlessness  of  mind  and 
languor  of  body  disappear  together. 

The  men  who  cater  to  the  public  taste,  who  run  excursion  steamers,  who 
provide  seaside  resorts,  make  no  mistake  in  this  matter.  They  know  what 
the  people  want.  They  have  felt  the  popular  pulse  and  prescribed  accord- 
ingly. They  know  that  the  desire  to  inhale  the  fresh  sea  breeze,  to  listen  to 
the  dash  of  the  waves  as  they  break  on  the  shore,  and  to  watch  the  sweep 
and  swell  of  the  waters  that  even 

"  As  Creation''s  dawn  beheld  them  roUeth  now," 
is  natural  and  whplesome,  and  they  apply  themselves  to  gratify  it; 
and  they  have  their  reward.  How  comes  it  that  private  profit  is  more  dis- 
cerning than  public  spirit  ?  What  makes  a  business  man  or  a  merchant 
more  clear-sighted  than  a  Mayor  ?  And  are  these  questions  to  be  asked,  or 
not  to  be  asked  ? 

A  RARE  ACQUISITION. 

Chief  among  the  objections  to  Pelham  Bay  Park  and  most  strenuously 
insisted  on  by  its  opponents  was  its  distance  from  the  centre  of  population 
audits  "inaccessibility."  These  objections  are  easily  answered.  A  large 
part  of  Pelham  is  not  further  than  Van  Cortlandt,  against  which  no  such 
objection  was  ever  seriously  raised,  and  it  is  considerably  nearer  than  Glen 
Island,  which  last  summer  had  700, OCO  visitors,  and  to  which  the  people 
continue  to  resort  in  ever  increasing  numbers.  Pelham  Park  can  be  reached 
as  easily  both  by  land  and  water  and  as  cheaply  as  Starin's.  The  Port- 
chester  and  Harlem  Railroad  runs  through  it  and  has  three  stations  within  its 
bounds,  and  on  the  water  front  there  are  three  or  four  landing  places  where 
large  steamers  can  disembark  their  passengers.  Moreover,  there  are  points 
from  which  docks  can  be  built  out  into  deep  water.  A  glance  ac  the  map 
shows  that  it  is  not  only  as  near  the  Grand  Central  depot  as  Van  Cortlandt, 


78  THE  NEW  PARKS. 

V 

but  its  nearest  point  is  only  half  a  mile  above  a  line  drawn  from  the 
northern  extremity  of  th3  Bronx.  In  addition  it  is  connected  with  the  rapid 
transit  system  of  New  York  city  by  the  Bridge  at  Second  avenue,  and 
when  travel  is  established  it  can  be  reached  from  Forty-second  street  in 
less  than  half  an  hour.  Those  who  prefer  the  water  route  can  take  the 
excursion  steamers  and  enjoy  an  hour's  sail. 

Those  who  love  fishing  can  have  it  here,  for  all  along  the  coast  bass, 
blue  fish,  black  fish,  flounders,  snappers  and  other  varieties  abound  in  the 
season,  and  in  many  a  nook  and  curve  where  the  shore  shelves  gently 
bathers  can  disport  themselves  in  perfect  safety. 

The  opposite  shore  of  Long  Island,  with  its  handsome  private  residences 
built  at  unequal  distances  from  the  water,  according  to  the  taste  or  fancy 
of  the  owner,  with  smiling  skies  above  and  dancing  waters  below,  makes 
up  a  landscape  that  is  pleasanter  to  look  upon  than  any  on  exhibition  in 
public  gallery.  In  fact,  the  views  obtainable  from  the  park  are  not  the 
least  of  its  charms;  its  beauties  are  not  confined  by  its  boundaries;  the 
Sound,  in  all  its  changing  moods,  belongs  to  it,  is  a  part  of  it,  and  praise 
lavished  on  it  is  but  a  tribute  to  the  excellence  of  the  site.  For  the 
Sound  is  an  outlying  lake  to  the  park,  and  is  to  Pelham  what  a  lawn  is 
to  a  country  mansion. 

POPULAR  BKCREATIONS. 

Beyond  all  doubt  this  will  be  the  favorite  park  of  the  people;  they  will 
not  consider  it  too  far,  and  their  verdict  on  that  point  will  be  conclusive. 
Two  or  three  miles  nearer  than  Glen  Island,  too  far  !  when  steamers 
plying  thither  are  overcrowded  and  the  insular  resources  are  taxed  to 
the  uttermost  to  satisfy  the  demands  of  each  successive  boat  load  of 
hungry  and  thirsty  visitors,  and  parties  of  lunchers  take  possession  of 
every  available  space  and  pre  empt  every  unoccupied  seat  in  the  grounds  ! 
Too  far  1  The  idea  is  absurd.  The  distance  is  an  added  charm,  it 
infuses  the  flavor  of  an  excursion  into  a  simple  day's  outing  and  lengthens 
the  pleasure  by  the  time  consumed  in  going  and  returning.  Thus  every 
moment  they  are  from  home  is  utilized  and  turned  to  account.  The  sail 
up  the  Sound  in  itself  is  no  small  pleasure,  and  the  majority  would 
probably  elect  to  go  by  that  route.  There  would  be  no  difficulty  in 
landing  the  passengers,  for,  as  before  stated,  there  are  three  or  four 
suitable  places  along  the  water  front  for  that  purpose  and  if  more  were 
required  the  owners  of  steamboat  lines  would  in  their  own  interest  see 
to  it.  And  what  opportunities  for  sight-seeing  this  nine  miles  of  coast 
would  give  in  regatta  time  I  Each  jutting  point  would  be  a  "coign  of 
■vantage,"  and  every  rock  and  hillock  would  afford  good  standing-ground 
for  interested  watchers.  And  whether  it  was  a  boat  race  or  a  yacht 
race,  whether  it  was  to  be  won  by  skillful  management  of  sails  or  vig- 
orous play  of  human  muscles,  the  city  would  send  out  its  thousands  and 
tens  of  thousands  to  watch  the  struggle  for  supremacy — many  indifferent 
who  won  and  who  lost,  more  painfully  interested  in  the  result.  And  who 
that  has  ever  seen  a  yacht  race,  the  graceful  contestants  quivering  under 
a  full  spread  of  canvas,  speeding  along  apparently  of  their  own  volition, 


THE  NEW  PARKS.  79 

no  human  agency  visible  and  yet  seemingly  under  the  influence  of  human 
passion,  struggling  for  precedence,  straining  for  victory,  like  a  man  or  race 
horse,  can  wonder  at  its  power  of  attraction. 

The  races,  of  course,  will  be  only  an  occasional  diversion ;  but  the  land 
sports,  the  athletic  games  of  all  kinds,  will  be  permanent,  and  can  be 
enjoyed  throughout  the  year  at  their  proper  seasons.  Base  ball,  tennis 
and  croquet  can  have  special  allotments;  picnic  aqd  excursion  parties 
Sunday  schools,  benevolent  societies,  and  school  children  will  find  room 
sufficient  without  bespeaking  it  in  advance,  and  trade,  military  and  choral 
societies  can  come  here  at  their  own  option,  fearless  of  being  crowded 
out. 

A  GRAND  SITK  FOR  A  ZOOLOGICAL  GARDEN. 

An  aquarium  and  a  zoological  garden  could  be  located  here  to  advantage 
The  marine  animals  would  be  in  their  native  element  and  their  habits  could 
be  observed  under  more  favorable  conditions  than  in  narrow  tanks,  which 
give  neither  scope  nor  opportunity  for  free  natural  action  and  movement. 
Aquatic  birds,  too,  would  thrive  better  in  this  atmosphere  than  in  the 
drier  air  of  the  inland  parks,  and  they  would  harmonize  more  with  the 
surroundings.  The  savage  forest  animals  would  be  less  disagreeable  here 
than  elsewhere,  for  the  fresh  sea  breeze  would  dissipate  and  neutralize  their 
rank,  offensive  smell.  Bovines  and  cervines  could  have  roomier  quarters, 
and  ampler  space  could  be  a  Horded  to  all  the  larger  animals  than  in  parks 
of  narrower  dimensions.  A  zoological  garden  on  a  grand  scale  in  Pelham 
would  not  necessitate  the  removal  of  that  attractive  feature  from  Central; 
it  would  not  be  a  substitute  for  it,  but  a  development  of  it— the  idea  per- 
fected, the  nucleus  expanded  to  fuller  proportions.  Central  without  its 
zoological  adjuncts  would  undoubtedly  lose  its  chief  interest  for  children 
and  many  others  besides  who  take  more  pleasure  in  seeing  different  forms 
of  animal  life,  even  the  grotesque  and  repulsive,  than  the  most  graceful 
specimens  of  vegetable  growth.  But  the  very  imperfect  collection  in 
Central  requires  to  be  largely  supplemented  before  New  York  will  have  a 
zoological  garden  worthy  of  the  name,  and  in  the  park  by  the  Sound  there 
will  be  no  lack  of  the  prime  essentials — pure  air,  fresh  breezes  and 
ample  space. 

Nor  will  the  most  generous  allowance  seem  to  curtail  the  people's  portion 
—nine  miles  of  water  boundary  is  a  guarantee  that  bathing,  boating  and 
fishing  could  be  enjoyed  without  let  or  hindrance  and  that  swimming 
matches  could  be  extended  to  any  desirable  length. 

Turning  from  the  wind-swept,  sea-washed  coast,  its  manifold  sinuosities 
and  its  multiform  curves,  to  the  park  it  bounds  and  circumscribes  on  three 
sides,  the  eye  rests  on  a  scene  worthy  of  such  a  noble  setting.  No  dead 
level  here  like  the  great  Viennese  Prater  or  Berlin's  gloomy  Thiergarten, 
but  every  phase  of  landscape  beauty,  wooded  eminences,  sunny  slopes, 
grassy  lawns,  lanes  walled  by  trees  and  roofed  by  branches,  through  which 
sun  and  rain  find  difficulty  in  entering,  and  undulations  of  billowy  green 
that  look  like  an  ocean  ground  swell.  Add  to  this  and  to  its  beauty  of 
outline  the  charm  of  its  internal  configuration,  its  jutting  peninsula,  its 


80  THE  NEW  PARKS. 

bridge- connected  islands,  and  every  unprejudiced  mind  will  admit  that  its 
possession  was  worth  struggling  for.  For  Pelham  Bay  Park  is  no  monot- 
onous repetition  of  its  inland  contemporaries.  Unique  in  position,  form, 
attractions  and  possibilities,  a  noble  expanse  of  water  almost  encircling 
it,  a  clear  unobstructed  view  of  the  heavens  overhead,  the  glory  of  space 
on  every  side,  it  was  not  only  worth  struggling  for,  but  it  was  well  worth 
incurring  official  hostility,  with  all  its  attendant  pains  and  penalties,  in 
order  to  secure  it  in  perpetuity  for  the  city  and  the  next  generation,  who 
will  prize  it  as  it  deserves,  and  hold  in  remembrance  the  men  who  worked 
so  hard  and  s©  disinterestedly  and  made  so  many  sacriflses  for  such  an 
unselfish  purpose. 

A  RETROSPECT. 

Even  those  who  opposed  the  acquisition  of  Pelham  Park  by  the  city  will, 
after  a  few  years  have  elapsed,  and  time  has  shown  its  value,  recognize  the 
wisdom  of  securing  it  and  rejoice  that  their  opposition  came  to  naught.  So 
it  was  over  thirty  years  ago  in  the  case  of  the  Astors  and  the  Goelets  and 
others  who  protested  against  the  creation  of  Central  Park  as  calculated  to 
bankrupt  the  city  and  who  now  profit  by  the  very  measure  they  denounced 
and  were  so  solicitous  to  defeat.  But  one  man  never  gains  wisdom  from 
another  man's  experience,  and  so  with  generations,  or  how  could  history 
repeat  itself  ?  This  generation  of  park  advocates  had  the  same  arguments 
to  combat  and  the  same  obstacles  to  surmount ;  moreover  they  had  to  bear 
with  misconstruction  of  their  motives  and  misrepresentations  of  their  facts. 
Ic  was  the  Central  Park  fight  over  again  with  more  venom  thrown  in ;  the 
same  discordant  strain  cZ«t  capo  with  harsher  dissonance.  Nor  was  the 
misconception  of  results  that  marked  the  creation  of  Central  Park  lacking. 
Five  or  ten  years  from  now  everybody  will  be  satisfied  and  there  will  be  da 
capo  to  the  harmony  as  there  was  to  the  discord.  Then  the  parallel  will  be 
complete. 

In  full  view  of  the  park  is  City  Island,  the  name  being  all  that  remains 
to  tell  of  high  hopes  and  ambitious  projects  entertained  by  the  first  proprie- 
tors. Here  they  intended  to  establish  a  magnificent  commercial  city  which 
would  carry  on  an  extensive  East  India  trade  with  the  States  of  HoUard. 
The  Revolution,  however,  changed  all  that,  and  though  the  idea  was 
revived  after  the  War  of  Independence  it  fell  through,  and  the  grand 
projected  city  dwindled  down  into  City  Island.  Formerly  its  inhabitants 
had  no  means  of  access  to  the  mainland  save  by  a  ferry,  but  in  1873  a 
bridge  erected  by  a  joint  stock  company  was  completed  and  thrown  open 
to  the  public,  and  of  this  structure  the  greater  part  of  the  materials  used 
in  its  erection  were  taken  from  the  frigate  North  Carolina.  City  Island, 
or  "  Great  Minniefords,"  as  it  was  formerly  called,  contains  about  230 
acres  of  land  and  is  quite  an  attractive  feature  as  viewed  from  the  park. 

The  great  drive  which  is  to  be  hereafter  known  as  the  Bronx  and  Pelham 
Parkway,  and  which  forms  the  connecting  link  between  the  Bronx  and 
Pelham  Bay  parks  is  400  feet  wide  and  will  be  one  of  the  grandest  avenues 
in  the  world.  It  is  a  boulevard  of  splendid  proportions  and  in  every  way 
worthy  of  the  magnificent  pleasure  ground  to  which  it  will  be  the  principal 


(/) 


THE  NEW   PARKS.  83 

entrance.  As  it  approaches  the  southern  bouadary  of  the  park  and  about 
a  mile  from  the  bridge  which  spans  Eistchestcr  Bay  a  fine  view  is  obtained 
of  the  picturesque  scenery  of  this  part  of  the  Sound  with  the  opposite 
shores  and  upland  of  Pelham  Neck  or  Annie's  Hoeck,  so  called  after  the 
celebrated  Anne  Hutchinson. 

A   PROFITABLE   REAL  ESTATE   OPERATION. 

The  "  Neck,"  as  it  has  been  termed  for  generations,  has  long  been  cele- 
brated not  only  for  the  beauty  of  the  landscapa,  its  gently  undulating  hills 
and  the  wide  range  of  view  which  it  affords  of  the  surrounding  country, 
but  it  is  particularly  noted  for  its  historical  reminiscences.  According  to 
the  earliest  traditions  it  was  the  great  burial  placa  of  the  Siwanoys,  a 
branch  of  the  Mohegans,  and  if  further  proof  were  wanted  it  is  to  hs  found 
in  the  many  Indian  mounds  which  still  remain  to  attest  its  right  to  the 
title.  Th3  original  Pell,  whose  cognomen  and  "  ham,"  or  hom3,  have  bean 
combined  to  give  name  not  only  to  the  Neck,  but  to  the  town,  had  bought 
in  1654  the  whole  section  of  country,  including  Pelham,  Westchester  and 
New  Rochelle,  comprising  9,  ICO  acres  from  the  aboriginal  owners  for  what 
in  popular  parlance  is  called  "a  mere  song."  In  the  language  of  the 
purchaser  the  title  passed  for  "a  valuable  consideration."  In  the  royal 
patent  by  which  the  purchase  was  confirmed  it  was  called  "due  satisfac- 
tion," and  for  this  patent  the  new  buyer  was  "  required  to  pay  one  lamb  on 
the  first  day  of  May  for  each  year." 

As  the  12,000  and  odd  acres  of  the  Island  of  Manhattan  had  been  bought 
of  the  red  owners  a  little  more  than  a  quarter  cf  a  csntury  prior  to  this 
transaction  for  $A  worth  of  baads  and  triakets,  it  is  very  doubtful  if  Mr. 
Thomas  ' '  Lord  "  Pell  was  a  bull  on  i-eal  estate  at  that  tim?,  whatever  his 
nephew  and  successor,  John  Pell,  may  have  been  when  ha  sold  6,100  acres 
of  the  Manor  thirty-five  years  after  for  the  same  number  of  dollars. 

It  is  doubtful  if  in  all  the  records  of  our  Real  Estate  Exchange  there  is 
an  instance  of  such  marvellous  and  rapid  increase  in  values.  The  Pells 
were  evidently  a  tbrifty  and  spsculative  family.  The  first  Pell  bought  it 
from  the  Siwanoys  in  all  probability  for  two  cents  an  ac:e,  the 
price  the  Dutch  paid  for  Manhattan  Island,  for  between  the  Dutch  and  the 
English  the  unfortunate  red  man  was  literally  between  the  upper  and 
nether  millstone.  At  the  close  of  another  century  very  few  of  the  Indians 
were  left,  and  the  remnant  of  the  tribe  had  nearly  all  been  laid  to  rest 
beneath  the  mounds,  traces  of  which  can  still  be  found  on  the  Rapelyea 
estate  close  to  the  water.  Of  these,  two  are  said  to  be  the  sepulchers  of  Ann  - 
book  and  Nimhan,  the  Siwanoy  Sachems,  who  lived  long  beyond  the  scrip- 
tural age.  On  tne  opening  of  several  of  these  tumuli,  skeletons,  stone  axes, 
flint  spears  and  arrow  heals,  spscimens  of  native  pottery,  and  other  relics 
were  found. 

These  mounds  should  ba  preserved,  as  they  will  ba  objects  of  particular 
interest  to  visitors.  They  should,  indeed,  be  the  special  care  of  the  Park 
Department  hereafter,  as  they  doubtless  will  be,  for  they  have  a  historical 
value  that  will  increase  with  time. 


84  THE  l^EW  PARKS. 

pelha:m  neck  axd  hunter's  island. 

From  the  mounds  on  the  southeastarn  point  of  Pelham  Neck  the  view  is 
one  of  the  most  beautiful  to  be  found  in  the  park.  The  shores  on  each  side 
of  Eastchester  Bay,  and  far  beyond  where  its  waters  mingle  with  those  of 
Hutchinson  River,  are  exceedingly  picturesque  and  worthy  the  canvas  of 
our  best  artists.  In  the  once  prolific  waters  of  this  bay,  which  has  always 
been  a  favorite  resort  for  anglers  (who  will  long  remember  Dave  Blizzard's 
float  by  the  bridge,  and  its  inexhaustible  supply  of  lines,  rods,  shrimps, 
clams  and  crabs),  the  Indians  found  an  abundance  of  fish;  the  dense  woods 
furnished  a  supply  of  other  game  and  the  Siwanoy's  village  on  the  Neck 
was  one  of  the  most  populous  along  the  shores  of  the  Sound.  The  waters 
do  not  swarm  with  fish  as  of  old,  but  there  are  still  sufficient  to  tempt  the 
skill  of  the  angler  and  afford  many  hours  of  healthy  pastime  to  the  disciples 
of  "  that  quaint  old  cruel  coxcomb,"  as  Byron  irreverently  styled  the  gentle 
Izaak.  As  to  the  woods  they  are,  it  is  true,  neither  so  dense  nor  so  exten- 
sive as  they  were,  but  Pelham  Neck  is  well  shaded  and  its  groves  afford 
many  a  pleasant  cool  retreat  from  the  fervid  summer  heat. 

Of  Hunter's  Island,  which  has  an  area  of  16-t  acres,  it  may  be  said  with 
absolute  truth  that  it  is  without  exception  the  finest  tract  to  be  found  on 
the  whole  line  of  the  coast  of  Westchester  of  equal  extent,  and  it  is  doubt- 
ful if  any  piece  of  land  on  the  shore  of  Long  Island,  or  the  Connecticut 
coast,  is  equal  to  it  in  rural  loveliness,  or  in  the  views  presented  from  its 
highest  points.  It  is,  indeed,  a  spot  of  rare  attractiveness.  From  the  most 
elevated  summit,  a  grand  prospect  is  spread  before  the  delighted  vision. 
Looking  beyond  the  magnificent  woods,  which  cover  nearly  one-fourth  the 
surface  of  the  island,  the  eye  takes  in  the  whole  sweep  of  the  Sound  to  the 
horizon,  the  opposite  shore  of  Long  Island  and  the  Westchester  and  Con- 
necticut coasts.  Hudson  River,  with  its  towering  palisades  and  lofty  hills, 
has  a  grandeur  peculiarly  its  own ;  but  the  eye  must  be  satisfied  to  rest  on 
them  alone,  for  its  majestic  banks  bound  the  range  of  vision.  On  Hunter's 
Island  how  different !  When  the  eye  has  taken  in  the  wide  expanse  of  the 
Sound,  it  turns  to  gaze  on  the  island  itself,  spread  out  beneath  like  a  map, 
and  sees  within  its  164  acres,  and  the  eighteen-and-a-half  of  the  outlying 
Twin  Island,  many  a  scene  on  which  ic  might  well  love  to  linger  by  the 
hou'-. 

These  two  islands  will  be  the  favorite  resorts  within  the  park,  although 
some  tastes  may  find  more  to  admire  in  Prospect  HiU  and  the  views  there- 
from, or  the  finely  cultivated  tract,  with  its  splendid  old  woods  and  acres 
of  velvet  lawn,  which  lie  to  the  south  of  Pelham  Bridge.  Still,  themaj?rity 
will  doubtless  prefer  Hunter's  and  Twin  islands,  especially  as  there  will  be 
found  the  most  suitable  sites  for  the  structures  cf  the  great  Permanent 
Industrial  Exhibition,  which  it  is  to  be  hoped  New  York  will  have  in 
the  near  future. 

As  the  Bronx  Park  has  its  Delancey's  Ancient  Pine  and  its  great  movable 
boulder,  so  Hunter's  Island  possesses  at  its  southeast  end,  a  rare  curiosity  of 
its  own  in  the  great  Indian  reck  "^li&how,"  and  on  the  east  side  still 
another  called  the  "  Grey  Mare,"  which  the  Indians  regarded  with  special 
veneration  as  the  gift  of  their  Manito. 


THE  NEW  PARKS.  87 

Like  all  parts  of  Westchester  County,  Pelham  has  its  revolutionary  mem- 
ories and  traditions.  British  raids  were  frequent,  for  a  portion  of  the 
fleet  was  always  anchored  in  the  Sound,  and  demands  were  constantly 
made  on  the  inhabitants  for  supplies  in  a  way  that  admitted  of  no 
debate.  It  was  "  Give  or "  and  the  unuttered  alternative  was  a  con- 
vincing argument. 

THE  BATTLE  ON  THE   NECK. 

On  October  18th,  1777,  Pelham  Neck  was  the  scene  of  a  fierce  encounter 
between  the  Americans  and  a  largely  outnumbering  British  force  from 
Throgg's  Neck  on  their  way  to  New  Rochelle,  a  few  days  before  the  disas- 
trous battle  of  White  Plains.  The  British  force  numbered  4,000,  and  con- 
stituted the  van  of  the  army  under  General  Howe,  whose  brother,  the 
Admiral,  controlled  with  his  fleet  the  waters  and  shores  of  the  Sound.  To 
oppose  the  landing  of  this  large  body  of  well-appointed,  well-equipped  troops 
protecced  by  the  British  gunboats,  the  full  strength  of  the  patriots  under 
Colonels  Shepard,  Read,  Baldwin  and  Glover  was  less  than  800.  These  800 
were  a  detachment  of  General  Lee's  army,  the  main  body  of  which  was 
encamped  at  a  distance  of  three  miles,  and  took  no  part  in  the  fight.  But 
the  men  who  were  intrusted  with  this  hazardous  enterprize  were  equal  to 
the  emergency,  and  though  the  British  effected  a  landing  they  little  dreamed 
of  the  warm  reception  prepared  for  them.  Drawing  up  his  little  force  and 
placing  them  iu  ambush  behind  stone  walls  aad  wherever  the  nature 
of  the  ground  afforded  sufficient  cencealment.  Col.  Glover  awaited  the 
progress  of  the  enemy.  As  the  British  confidently  advanced,  a  small 
skirmish  line  of  fifty  men  was  thrown  out  as  a  mas-:  by  Colonel  Glover, 
who,  having  completed  his  arrangements,  took  command  and  temporarily 
arrested  the  progress  of  the  foe.  Then  slowly  falling  back  upon  the  ambus- 
cade the  patriots  delivered  a  few  volleys  that  put  four  of  the  redcoats  ?iors- 
de-combat,  the  Colonel  losing  two  of  his  own  men.  Having  swept  this 
seemingly  slight  obstruction  out  of  their  way,  the  British  advance  was 
continued  till  within  thirty  yards  of  the  first  stone  wall,  when  the  patriots 
I'ising  up  delivered  a  galling,  point  blank  fire  right  into  its  close  ranks, 
breaking  it  into  fragments  and  driving  the  shattered  remnants  back  on  the 
main  body.  An  hour  and  a  half  was  lost  in  gathering  up  and  reforming 
the  broken  lines  before  another  advance  was  ordered. 

Strengthpned  by  fresh  reinforcements  the  enemy  now  numbered  4,C0J 
men  of  all  arms,  horse,  foot  and  artillery,  which  kept  up  an  incestant  fire 
as  it  again  approached  the  ambuscade;  but  Read  and  his  men  were  still 
there,  and  when  the  enemy  were  within  fifty  yards  they  were  received  with 
volley  after  volley  until  seven  well-directed  discharges  were  poured  into 
their  compact  columns.  As  they  still  advanced.  Read  having  successfully  per- 
formed his  allotted  part,  fell  back  behind  the  second  stone  wall.  Here 
Shepard's  men  had  been  placed,  and  as  the  enemy  came  within  the  required 
distance  they  were  received  with  a  storm  of  bullets  which  cut  great  gaps  iu 
their  ranks.  Bewildered  by  this  second  and  unexpected  ambuscade,  they 
reeled  as  the  deadly  fire  was  delivered  at  short  range,  and  repeated  seven- 
teen times  before  iShepard's  command  abandoned  the  second  line  of  defense. 


88  THE  KEW  PARKS. 

Again,  and  for  the  third  time,  the  British  line  was  reformed,  Shepard's 
men  falling  back  till  the  third  and  last  line  was  reached,  and  here  the  same 
tactics  were  adopted  and  with  heavy  loss  to  the  foe.  This  ended  the  fight, 
the  American  commanders  having  accomplished  their  purpose  in  checking 
the  progress  of  the  enemy,  inflicting  heavy  damage  and,  what  was  still 
more  essential,  seriously  impairing  his  prestige  and  confidence  in  his  own 
powers.  In  this  "  aflfair  "  he  had  lost,  according  to  some  estimates,  one 
thousand  men,  or  about  two  to  every  American  who  actually  took  part  in 
the  engagement.  It  was  a  heavy  blow  and  produced  a  telling  effect,  at  the 
time,  on  the  royalist  cause.  On  this  splendidly  contested  field,  which  has 
made  Pelham  Neck  as  famous  in  our  Revolutionary  history  as  that  of  Ther- 
mopylae, and  which  is  worthy  of  memorial  monument,  only  twelve  of  the 
patriots  were  killed. 

A  NAVAL  PRIZE. 

The  same  year  saw  another  brilliant  exploit,  planned  and  executed  by 
common  boatmen,  carried  out  triuuiphantly.  At  that  time  British  gun- 
boats were  stationed  along  the  fciound  as  guard  ships.  The  ofiicers  and 
crew  treated  the  villagers  with  exasperating  harshness  and  received  the 
natural  return.  Hatred  and  indignation  incited  the  outraged  people  to 
attempt  the  capture  of  their  oppressors.  A  plan  was  arranged  by  Con- 
necticut whaleboatmen  and  successfully  executed.  Across  Pelham  Neck 
they  carried  their  boat  and  took  possession  of  a  market  sloop  that  traded 
to  New  York  and  supplied  the  guardship  with  provisions.  The  Connecticut 
men,  ten  or  twelve  in  number,  well  armed,  concealed  themselves  in  the 
hold  while  their  leader  remained  on  deck  and  obliged  the  owner  to  lay  his 
craft  alongside  the  British  vessel,  as  usual  when  furnishing  supplies.  In 
the  dusk  of  the  early  morning  the  two  vessels  touched.  Up  rushed 
the  boatmen,  and  in  a  twinkling  the  crew,  only  half  awake,  were  prisoners 
and  forced  to  help  navigate  the  prize  into  New  London. 

In  1814  two  British  men-of-war,  after  bombarding  Stonington,  appeared 
in  these  waters  and  the  shores  of  Pelham  re-echoed  to  the  roar  of  their 
guns.  The  Amei  icans  returned  their  fire,  and  after  a  sharp  cannonading 
on  both  sides  the  patriots  returned  to  New  York  and  the  men-of-war  to 
New  London.  It  was  the  last  time  the  thunder  of  British  guns  disturbed 
the  tranquility  of  this  quiet  spot.. 

MISTRESS  ANNE. 

Traditions  of  Indian  outbreaks  and  atrocities  still  linger  around  the  place, 
and  Anne  Hutchinson's  eventful  life  and  tragic  death  impart  to  it  an  element 
of  romance  and  adventure.  Driven  out  by  the  Puritans  after  a  stormy 
conflict  with  their  authorities  and  a  contemptuous  defiance  of  their  intol- 
erant laws,  she  and  her  family  settled  down  in  this  then  uninhabited  wilder- 
ness to  end  her  days  in  peace;  and  here  she  was  massacred  by  the  Indians. 
Her  family  shared  her  fate  with  the  exception  of  one  little  girl  who  was 
carried  off  by  the  savages  and  lived  with  them  four  years,  but  at  the  end 
of  that  time  was  ransomed  and  restored  to  civilized  life. 

The  Hutchinson  River,  which  forms  part  of  the  western  botmdary  of 


CO 


THE  NEW  PARKS.  91 

Pelbam  Bay  Park,  keeps  alive  the  memory  of  stately,  heroic  Mistress 
Anne,  whose  death  caused  Boston  to  rejoice,  inasmuch  as  God  had  made 
*■  a  heavy  example"  of  "  a  woful  woman;"  for  Acqueanouncke,  its  Indian 
naMie,  disappeared  from  popular  use  long  since  and  is  only  seen  now  in 
history  or  heard  from  the  lips  of  book-worms. 

There  are  persons  who  take  more  interest  in  curiosities  of  vegetation,  or 
freaks  of  growth,  or  nature,  than  in  traditions  however  ancient  or  well 
authenticated.  Such  will  be  struck  with  the  curious  spectacle  of  a  tree 
growing  out  of  a  crevice  in  the  heart  of  a  rock  that  stands  on  the  cross 
road  between  Pelham  and  New  York  roads.  There  it  has  stood  for  years 
without  change.  No  one  saw  it  as  a  sapling  and  no  one  has  noticed  any 
signs  of  decay.    It  is  quite  a  landmark  and  a  very  odd  and  picturesque  one. 

PARK  REVENUES. 

From  the  new  parks  the  city  will  derive  a  considerable  revenue  through 
the  letting  and  leasing  of  certain  previleges.  Pelham  Bay  Park  will  con- 
tribute in  dock  rent  paid  by  steamboats,  and  with  the  other  parktf  will  swell 
the  income  derivable  from  public  restaurants  and  various  kinds  of  enter- 
tainments patronized  by  the  visitors,  as  in  the  parks  of  Paris,  Vienna  and 
Berlin,  and  on  a  more  limited  scale  in  Central  Park.  The  aggregate 
amount  obtained  from  these  different  sources  will  increase  year  after  year 
as  the  population  increases,  and  when  within  thirty  years— a  generation — 
we  shall  have,  as  the  past  history  of  our  city  and  the  census  returns  fore- 
shadow, 6,000,000  within  its  boundaries,  the  income  from  our  parks,  if  they 
are  properly  conducted,  should  be  suflBcient  to  pay  the  whole  of  the 
expenses  of  their  support.  Pelham,  of  course,  will  contribute  more  to  the 
maintainance  fund  than  the  other  parks,  for  the  simple  reason  that  being 
sui  generis  it  will  attract  larger  crowds.  It  is  our  only  seaside  park,  it  is 
the  Newport  ot  the  masses,  not  to  be  admired  only,  but  to  be  enjoyed  with 
a  clear  perception  of  its  worth  and  the  serene  consciousness  of  possession ; 
and  for  these  reasons,  not  to  mention  others,  the  people  will  flock  to  it  and 
patronize  the  different  refreshment  stands,  the  more  pretentious  restau- 
rants, the  bathing  houses,  the  coasting  steamers,  the  shows,  the  various 
places  of  amusement  that  spring  up  like  mushroons  wherever  crowds 
resort. 

A  SITE   FOR  AN  OBSERVATORY. 

But  in  time  other  features  of  interest  will  be  added  besides  those  required 
for  purposes  of  recreation  or  amusement;  monuments  to  commemorate 
historical  events  connected  with  the  locality,  and  works  of  art  to  preserve 
the  memory  of  dead,  or  perpetuate  the  fame  of  living  celeb-^ities.  There, 
too,  might  be  erected  a  magnificent  astronomical  observatory  on  a  grand 
scale.  The  unobstructed  view  of  the  heavens  from  many  of  the  elevated 
points  suggests  it,  the  open  space  affords  ample  room  for  it.  There  no  huge 
apartment  houses  can  blur  the  sky,  and  shut  from  view ''  the  turning  about 
of  Arcturus,"  or  the  circum  polar  stars  as  they  go  swinging  around  the 
circle.  Nowhere  could  "the  stars  in  their  courses"  be  seen  to  greater 
advantage,  nowhere  could  astronomy  be  more  practically  or  profitably 
studied  than  in  an  observatory  located  in  Pelbam  Bay  Park. 


92  THE  NEW  PARKS. 

THE  BOUNDARIES, 

The  following  are  the  boundaries  as  defined  by  the  act:  "  Beginning ca 
Long  Island  Sound  at  a  point  where  a  line  drawn  from  the  termination  of 
the  northern  boundary  of  the  city  of  New  York  touches  the  Bronx  River  to 
the  furthermost  northern  point  of  the  '  Pass  Rocks,'  a  ledge  of  rocks  north 
of  Hunter's  Island,  would  touch  the  shore  line  aud  waters  of  Long  Island 
Sound;  from  thence  westerly  along  said  line  between  the  New  York  city 
northern  boundary  and  Long  Island  Sound  to  a  point  about  1,000  feet 
easterly  from  the  easterly  side  of  the  Old  Boston  Pose  road,  meastlTiag  from 
its  junction  with  the  extended  northern  boundary  of  New  York  city;  from 
thence  southerly  to  the  nearest  point  on  the  northerly  shore  of  Hutchinson's 
River;  from  thence  southerly  and  easterly  along  the  northern  shore  of 
Hutchinson's  River  to  a  point  formed  by  a  line  drawn  due  northwest  from 
the  most  westerly  point  on  Goose  Island,  in  said  Hutchinson's  River  on 
Eastchester  Bay,  and  touching  the  northerly  shore  line  of  said  Hutchinson's 
River ;  from  this  point  southerly  in  a  straight  line  to  a  point  formed  by  the 
westerly  line  of  the  Harlem  River  and  Portcl  ester  Railroad  Company's 
right  of  way  with  the  southerly  shore  line  of  Eastchester  Bay  or  Hutchin- 
son's River ;  from  thence  in  a  straight  line  to  the  northwesterly 
corner  of  the  property  belonging  to  and  known  as  the  residence 
of  John  W.  Hunter,  Esq  ;  from  thence  along  said  property 
line  of  John  Hunter  southerly  to  the  eastern  line  of  the  Eastern 
Boulevard;  from  thence  along  said  eastern  line  of  the  Eastern  Boulevard 
to  the  southwesterly  corner  of  lands  belonging  to  J.  Furman,  Esq. ;  from 
thence  easterly  along  the  boundary  line  between  the  property  of  said  Fur- 
man  and  the  lands  of  LorUlard  Spencer  and  J  M.  Water  bury  to  Long 
Island  Sound;  from  thence  following  northwardly  the  coast  line  along  the 
shores  and  waters  of  Long  Island  Sound,  East  Chester  and  Pelham  bays, 
around  and  including  Pelham  Bridge  Island  and  Pelham  Neck  to  the  south- 
erly line  of  the  causeway  leading  to  Hunter's  Island  ;  thence  along  said 
southerly  line  of  causeway  to  Hunter's  Island ;  thence  southerly,  easterly, 
northerly  and  westerly,  and  southerly  aloug  the  shore  and  waters  of  the 
coast  line  of  said  Hunter's  Island  and  the  small  island  known  as  the  Twin, 
foUowmg  said  coast  line  entirely  around  said  Hunter's  and  Twin  islands  to 
the  northerly  line  of  ttie  causeway  or  bridge  leading  to  the  main  land  from 
Hunter's  Island ;  from  thence  along  said  northerly  line  of  causeway  to 
the  shore  and  water  line  of  the  main  land ;  from  thence  along  said  main 
land  shore  aud  water  line  northerly  to  the  place  of  beginning.  Together 
with  all  small  islands,  rocks,  etc. ,  situate  and  lying  within  a  line  drawn 
between  the  extreme  southerly  bound  herein  described  and  the  farthest 
southeastern  projection  of  Pelham  Rock,  and  between  the  most  easterly 
point  on  Pelham  Rock  and  the  outermost  southern  and  eastern  point  of 
Hunter's  and  Twin  islands;  and  also  including  the  rocks  on  the  north  and 
east  of  Hunter's  Island  known  as  Pass  Rocks." 

FURNISHED  AND  UNFURNISHED  PARKS— A  QUESTION  OF  ECONOMY. 

In  the  selection  of  the  sites  the  main  object,  as  before  intimated,  which 
was  kept  steadily  in  view,  ^as  the  suitability  of  the  land  for  the  purpose  to 


CO 


£U  I'll 


THE  NEW  PARKS.  95- 

which  it  was  to  be  applied.  While  it  was  desirable  that  parks  should  be 
established  at  the  most  accessible  points,  it  was  also  essential  that  the  tracts 
chosen  should  be  of  such  a  character  as  to  reduce  the  expense  of  their 
improvement  hereafter  to  a  minimum.  In  other  words,  it  was  deemed 
advisable,  in  the  interest  of  economy,  that  the  land  should  possess  all 
the  required  conditions  necessary  to  constitute  a  park— that  it  should 
have  a  diversity  of  surface,  be  well  wooded  and  the  presence  of  water,  in 
the  form  of  lakes  or  streams,  was  regarded  as  a  specially  valuable  feature, 
adding  largely  to  its  attractiveness. 

The  experience  which  the  city  had  acquired  in  the  construction  of  Central 
Park  warned  against  a  repetition  of  that  costly  business,  and  it  was  decided 
that  it  was  cheaper  to  purchase  parks  already  made  than  to  select  treeless 
wastes,  without  water  ^nd  devoid  of  thoiie  topographical  features  which 
constitute  the  great  charm  of  all  parks  deserving  of  the  name.  Thus  the 
city  would  be  saved  the  expense  of  tree  planting,  and  the  water  area  could, 
if  required,  be  extended  by  engineering  skill.  Much  precious  time  which 
would  be  expended  in  this  work  would  be  saved  and  the  paople  would  enter 
into  the  immediate  enjoyment  of  the  parks,  instead  of  waiting  at  least  half 
a  generation  for  their  completion.  If  the  choice  could  have  been  presented 
to  the  public  when  the  ground  for  the  Central  was  appropriated  between  that 
and  a  park  already  furnished,  there  could  bs  no  question  as  to  their  decision. 
They  would  doubtless  have  been  most  willing  to  have  paid  the  difference 
in  the  price,  if,  by  so  doing,  they  could  have  secured  immediate  possession 
and  use. 

It  is,  therefore,  needless  to  say  that  such  considerations  had  great  weight 
in  determining  the  question  of  selection  and  location.  One  of  the  chief 
elements  in  the  value  of  any  article  is  its  suitability  to  the  purpose  for  which 
it  is  intended  or  required,  and  this  rule  was  applicable  in  a  peculiar 
degree  to  the  case  of  the  parks.  A  hundred  acres  of  well-wooded  land, 
with  hills  and  dales,  rocks  and  glens,  with  a  stream  or  a  lake  to  give  the 
desii'ed  variety,  would  certainly  be  worth  more  to  the  city  than  a  hundred 
acres  of  level  waste.  That  might  answer  for  a  parade  ground,  or  a  huge 
base-ball  field,  but  it  would  never  do  for  a  people's  play  ground. 
Better  pay  two,  or  three,  or  four  thousand  dollars,  or  even  more  per 
acre  for  made  parks,  than  buy  the  required  area  at  half  those  figures  and 
expend  double,  treble,  quadruple  the  amount  and  lose  years  in  the  work  of 
preparing  them  for  public  use  and  occupation. 

CROTONA  PABK. 

These  were  the  considerations  that  prevailed  iu  the  location  of  the  new 
parks,  and  in  no  instance  were  they  lost  sight  of  for  a  moment.  The  beau- 
tiful tract  known  as  Crotona  was  found  to  possess  all  the  features  of  a 
natural  park,  and  to  have  the  additional  advantage  of  location  and  accessi- 
bility. It  is  situated  on  the  ridge  of  land  which  forms  the  eastern  crown 
of  the  water-shed  of  Mill  Brook  Valley  and  commands  an  extensive  view 
of  the  surrounding  country,  bringing  within  the  range  of  vision  the  Pali- 
sades and  the  piers  of  the  Brooklyn  Bridge.  From  its  former  name  of 
Bathgate  Woods  it  is  evident  that  in  the  essential  matter  of  shade  it  is 


96  THE  NEW  PARKS. 

liberally  provided.  Of  all  the  parks  it  is  in  fact  conspicuous  in  this  respect, 
and  among  its  fioe  old  forest  trees,  luxuriant  in  their  foliage,  can  be 
reckoned  the  oak,  the  elm,  the  magnolia,  the  maple  and  a  bewildering 
variety  of  others  of  more  or  less  value.  There  is  many  a  cool  retreat  and 
delightful  vista  withia  the  depths  of  these  grand  old  woods  ;  many  a 
favorite  resort  in  which  picnic  parties  have,  through  the  kind  indulgence 
of  the  owner,  enjoyed  themselves,  free  from  the  oppressive  heat  of  the  long 
summer  day.  Within  its  135  acres  are  to  be  found  commanding  heights, 
wide-spread  undulating  meadows,  shady  glades  and  glens,  green  with  the 
gloom  of  trees,  soft  cirpets  of  moss  and  lichens,  springs  and  rivulets  of 
cool  and  refreshing  water,  and  all  this  in  the  centre  of  a  district  that  in 
less  than  a  decade  is  destined  to  have  within  its  bounds  a  large  portion  of 
the  population  north  of  the  Harlem. 

From  its  location  it  will  be  seen  that  Crotona  Park  is  the  centre  of  that 
portion  of  the  city  which  lies  beyond  the  Harlem,  and  that  it  is  accessible 
by  the  horse  cars  and  by  the  Harlem  and  elevated  railroads.  As  to  the 
means  of  access  they  are  ample  and  bring  the  park  withia  reach  of  all  parts 
of  the  city  ;  but,  as  intimated,  it  will  not  be  many  years  before  its  area  will 
be  found  barely  adequate  to  meet  the  local  demand.  In  fact  as  it  has  been 
considered  necessary  to  provide  for  the  education  of  the  rapidly  increasing 
juvenile  population,  a  grammar  school  was  erected  within  the  limits  of 
what  is  now  the  park,  and  it  is  one  of  the  largest  and  finest  structures  of 
its  kind  in  the  metropolis.  Those  limits  as  defined  in  the  act  are  as  follows : 
Beginning  at  the  junction  of  the  northern  boundary  of  the  Twenty-third 
Ward  and  the  easterly  line  of  Fulton  avenue,  as  shown  on  the  map  of  the 
new  system  of  streets  as  laid  out  by  the  Commissioners  of  Public  Parks ; 
thence  eastwardly  along  said  northern  boundary  of  the  Twenty-third 
Ward,  crossing  Franklin  avenue  (Broadway)  and  continuing  on  said  boun- 
dary line  to  a  point  330  feet  westerly  from  the  westerly  line  of  Boston  Post 
road  ;  thence  along  a  line  parallel  to  and  westwardly  of  the  said  westerly 
line  of  Boston  Post  road,  and  distant  therefrom  3i3  feet,  to  the  junction  of 
the  Boston  Post  road  with  the  Southern  Boulevard  ;  thence  on  a  line  320 
feet  westerly  and  parallel  to  the  westerly  side  of  the  Southern  Boulevard  to 
a  point  300  feet  southerly  from  the  southerly  line  of  Fairmount  avenue 
as  shown  on  said  city  map  ;  thence  westerly  310  feet  distant  from  and 
parallel  to  the  southerly  line  of  Fairmount  avenue,  crossing  Franklin 
avenue  (Broadway)  to  a  prolongation  southerly  of  the  westerly  line  of 
Broad  street  as  shown  on  said  map  ;  thence  northerly  along  such  pro- 
longation of  the  westerly  line  of  Broad  street,  and  northerly  along  said 
westerly  line  of  Broad  street  to  its  junction  with  the  southerly  line  of 
Tremont  avenue;  thence  westerly  along  the  southerly  line  of  Tremont 
avenue  to  the  junction  of  said  line  with  the  easterly  line  of  Fordham 
avenue;  thence  southerly  .along  said  easterly  line  of  Fordham  avenue 
to  the  northerly  line  of  One  Hundred  and  Seventy-fifth  street  (Fitch  street) ; 
thence  easterly  280  feet  along  said  northerly  line  of  Fitch  street;  thence  in 
B,  straight  line  southerly  to  the  place  or  point  of  beginning. 


THE  NEW  PARKS.  97 

ST.   MARY'S  PARK. 

St.  Mary's  Park,  the  smallest  of  the  tracts  selected,  lies  nearest  to  the 
Harlem  River,  so  near,  in  fact,  that  it  seems  rather  a  city  park  than  a 
suburban.  It  is  not  connected  with  the  trans  Harlem  park  system  by  boule- 
vards or  parkways,  but  stands  isolated  and  alone,  perfect  in  itself,  its 
miniature  loveliness  challenging  comparison  with  the  largest  and  fairest  of 
its  compsers.  Its  area  is  twenty -five  acres  and  one-third,  and  within  that 
limited  space  all  the  points  that  constitute  the  charm  of  a  public  pleasure 
ground  are  to  be  found  in  abundance:  wood  and  water,  trees  and  shrubs, 
hill  and  valley,  barren  rocks  and  emerald  meadows;  and  all  these  so 
disposed  that  one  form  of  beauty  heightens  the  other  by  contrast. 

Unlike  Mount  Morris  Park,  which  is  a  level  tract  encircling  a  rocky 
eminence,  St.  Mary's  is  beautifully  undulating ;  the  ground  sinks  and  swells, 
rising  in  places  to  over  a  hundred  feet,  from  which  elevation  an  extended 
view  of  the  great  metropolis  can  be  obtained.  Spread  beneath  the  spectator 
like  an  outstretched  map  it  lies,  fi'om  the  bordering  Hudson  to  the  East 
River  and  the  Sound. 

Like  all  the  new  parks,  St.  Mary's  requires  no  outlay  for  improvements 
or  embellishments.  Nature  has  been  beforehand  and  done  all  that  was 
necessary.  She  has  fashioned  it  in  her  own  way,  built  the  hills,  grassed  the 
slopes,  hollowed  the  valleys,  and  ranged  the  trees  in  social  groups  or 
solitary  units.  Consequently  it  is  free  from  insipid  regularity  and  formal 
devices.  Its  topographical  peculiarities  have  been  preserved  and  the  result 
is  a  park  that  is  a  gem  iu  its  way  without  any  artificial  beauty  about  it. 
And  yet  one  cannot  look  at  this  tract  without  feeling  that  it  is  so  out  of 
keeping  with  the  surrounding  land,  that  it  seems  to  have  been  taken  with 
its  beauty  of  configuration  and  charming  diversity  of  surface  up  bodily 
from  some  more  favored  spot  and- set  right  down  here— a  park  superim- 
posed upon  an  ordinary  country  tract,  a  flat,  level  surface  fit  only  to  be 
built  on  or  ploughed  over,  or  for  any  of  the  ordinary  uses  of  every  day  life ; — 
and  inside  this  park  natural  springs,  woodland  and  upland,  the  air  redolent 
with  the  odor  of  plant  and  flower  and  musical  with  the  song  of  birds. 

St.  Mary's  Park  was  iacluded  in  the  estate  of  Gouverneur  Morris,  the 
patriot  statesman,  whose  name  is  inscribed  in  the  early  annals  of  the 
country,  who  was  a  member  of  the  convention  that  framed  the  Constitutions 
of  the  United  States  and  the  State  of  New  York,  and  who  served  the 
country  subsequently  in  the  Saaate  of  the  Republic.  Mr.  Morris  also 
filled  the  post  of  Minister  to  Prance,  and  he  now  rests  in  the  cemetery  of 
St.  Ann's  Church,  a  few  hundred  feet  from  the  park.  St.  Ann's  is  an  old 
and  picturesque  edifice  and  its  unmistakable  air  of  antiquity  contrasts  strik- 
ingly with  the  modern  buildings  in  close  juxtaposition  and  adds  not  a  little 
to  the  beauty  of  the  landscape. 

The  people  of  Morrisania,  long  before  it  became  part  and  parcel  of  New 
York  city,  recognized  the  suitability  of  this  tract  for  a  public  park  and 
proposed  to  set  it  apart  for  that  purpose.  Country  picnic  parties  and  city 
sight-seers  enjoyed  themselves  therein,  the  popular  will  outrunning  ofiicial 
action  and  virtually  ignoring  official  tardiness.  It  was  adapted  for  a  park, 
it  was  intended  for  a  park,  and  a  park  the  people  determined  it  should  be. 


98  THE  NEW  PARKS. 

And  so  it  has  been  regarded  aad  used  by  the  people  of  Morrisania  and  the 
■vicinity  for  years.  Nevertheless,  when  ic  form  illy  passes  into  the  possession 
of  the  city  next  year  there  will  be  greater  crowds  and  keener  enjoyment. 
There  will  be  no  fear  of  loss,  no  dread  of  its  being  cut  up  into  building  lots 
and  becoming  the  centre  of  an  up-town  tenement-house  system,  interfering 
with  the  enjoyment  and  threatening  the  health  of  the  people.  It  is  their's 
to  have  and  to  hold  in  saecula  sceculorum,  for  it  has  been  taken  by  the  a'^t 
In  which  its  boundaries  are  deflaei.  These  begin  at  a  point  formed  by  the 
intersection  of  the  southerly  line  of  St.  Mary's  avenue  and  the  easterly  line 
of  St.  Ann's  avenue ;  thenca  northerly  along  the  easterly  line  of  St.  Ann's 
avenue  to  the  southerly  line  of  One  Hundred  and  Forty-ninth  street ; 
thence  along  the  southerly  line  of  One  Huadred  and  Forty-ninth  street 
easterly  to  the  westerly  right-of-way  line  of  the  Port  Morris  Branch 
Railroad  Company's  property;  thence  southeasterly  along  said  westerly 
line  of  railroad  right-of-way  to  the  easterly  line  of  a  street  forming  a 
southerly  extension  of  Robbins  avenue,  as  shown  on  a  map  of  the  new 
system  of  streets  as  laid  out  by  the  Commissioners  of  Public  Parks;  thence 
along  the  easterly  line  of  such  street,  extending  southerly  from  Robbins 
avenue  about  151  feet;  thence  westerly  and  in  a  straight  line  to  a  point  in 
the  southerly  line  of  St.  Mary's  street,  distant  about  30  feet  northerly  and 
at  right  angles  with  the  northerly  line  of  One  Hundred  and  Forty-third  street ; 
from  thence  along  the  southerly  line  of  St.  Mary's  street  westerly  to  the 
point  of  beginning. 

CLAREMONT  PARK. 

Claremont  Park,  Like  St.  Mary's,  is  outside  of  the  park  system.  It  con- 
tains thirty-eight  acres,  and  is  situated  about  three-quarters  of  a  mile  from 
flighbridge.  It  is  thoroughly  country-like  and  rural,  and  seems  rather  a 
valley  in  the  Catskills  than  a  park  in  the  city  of  New  York.  Nothing 
reminds  one  of  the  busy,  bustling  life  outside ;  the  rush  of  business  is  unf elt 
here,  and  the  struggle  for  wealth  and  the  strife  for  precedence  appears  an 
absurd  waste  of  time  and  energy.  But  the  shriek  of  the  locomotive  as  it 
rushes  past  soon  corrects  such  ideas  and  brings  with  it  thoughts  more  in 
harmony  with  the  restless  energy  of  modern  life. 

In  one  important  particular,  the  conformation  of  the  ground,  Claremont 
dififers  essentially  from  the  other  detached  park — St.  Mary's.  In  brief,  it  is 
Q.  lovely  valley,  lying  between  hills  that  border  it  on  the  east  and  west. 
These  bordering  ridges  are  not  of  a  uniform  height:  the  most  elevated 
points  rise  over  100  feet  and  descend  precipitously  or  gently  some  50  or  60 
feet,  the  irregularity  of  outline  adding  not  a  little  to  the  picturesque  effect 
of  the  whole.  From  these  points  a  good  view  is  obtained  of  the  surround- 
ing country,  and  at  the  same  time  the  interlying  valley,  100  feet  below,  is 
visible  through  its  entire  extent.  The  effect  is  pleasing,  and  the  contrast 
between  the  lovely  vale  sleeping  in  the  sun  and  the  wide-awake  world 
beyond  its  hill  boundaries  is  striking,  and  reminds  the  spectator  of  the 
happy  valley  of  Rasselas. 

Its  surface  is  beautifully  diversified ;  stretches  of  meadow  land  alternat- 
ing with  gentle  eminences,  and  tracts  well  covered  with  flouiishing  stately 


o 

o 


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a>' 


THE  NEW   PARKS.  101 

trees  of  vigorous  growth  and  magnificent  foliage.  Clambering  vines  drape 
the  rocks  and  beautify  the  rugged  pathways,  fling  a  green  veil  over  the 
gnarled  I'oots  and  branches  of  decrepid  trees  evoking  beauty  from  decay. 
Like  all  the  parks  of  the  new  system  it  is  ready-made,  fit  for  use  without 
loss  of  time  or  expenditure  of  money.  "We  have,  it  is  true,  called  attention 
to  that  important  fact  in  every  instance  with  a  persistence  that  savors  of 
monotony,  but  there  is  nothing  the  people  are  more  interested  in  knowing. 
If,  as  in  the  case  of  the  Central  Park,  they  had  to  wait  ten  or  fifteen  years 
before  it  was  ready,  it  would  temper  their  pleasure  considerably  in  the 
possession.  Fortimately  it  is  not  so,  and  the  time  gained  and  the 
money  saved  are  two  important  items  to  be  added  to  the  credit  of  these 
parks.  Claremont  is  admirably  located,  and  every  year  it  will  be  more 
appreciated  by  the  dwellers  roundabout,  as  time  makes  its  value  more 
apparent  and  its  use  more  imiversal. 

The  boundaries  of  the  park  begin  at  a  point  formed  by  the  junction  of 
the  prolongation  westwardly  |of  the  southerly  line  of  Jane  street  (old 
name)  with  the  easterly  line  of  Fleetwood  avenue;  thence  easterly  along 
said  prolongation  and  along  the  southerly  line  of  Jane  street  and  con- 
tinuing eastwardly  said  straight  line  to  its  junction  with  the  westerly  line 
of  (Grant  Place)  Elliott  street;  thence  along  the  westerly  line  of  Elliott 
street  southerly  to  the  easterly  line  of  Fleetwood  avenue ;  thence  along  the 
easterly  line  of  Fleetwood  avenue  to  the  place  of  beginning. 

THE  PARKWAYS. 

In  the  original  design  of  the  new  park  domain  the  great  parkways  were 
considered  not  only  a  most  attractive,  but  an  essential  part  of  the  whole 
plan.  They  were  intended  not  merely  as  connecting  links  uniting  the 
great  pleasure  grounds,  but  as  extensions  of  the  parks,  and  as  affording  a 
grand  continuous  drive  from  the  Van  Cortlandt  through  the  Bronx  over  to 
the  Sound. 

The  financial  gain  which  would  be  derived  by  the  city  from  the  extended 
line  of  park  frontage  was  also  regarded  as  a  matter  of  special  moment 
in  the  conception  and  execution  of  the  plan,  as  it  was  believed  that 
the  effect  on  the  enhancement  of  the  value  of  contiguous  territory  would 
be  no  less  marked  than  in  the  case  of  the  parks  themselves.  While  the 
parkways,  therefore,  possessed  all  the  advantages  of  boulevards  their 
greater  width  would  give  them  the  appearance  of  continous  parks  through 
which  broad  avenues,  bordered  with  over-arching  trees,  could  be  con- 
structed, with  shaded  walks  for  pedestrians  and  graveled  roads  for 
equestrians.  It  was  also  perceived  that  such  a  feature  in  the  new  park 
system,  while  it  would  add  to  the  increased  taxable  value  of  the  adjacent 
territory,  was  susceptible  of  embellishment  in  the  highest  degree,  and,  in  the 
future  of  the  northern  portion  of  the  city  beyond  *he  Harlem,  would  form 
one  of  its  chief  attractions. 

The  pleasure  grounds  of  Chicago  embrace  a  system  of  boulevards  that  is 
unequalled  in  the  New  World.  With  a  width  varying  from  a  hundred  to 
two  hundred  and  fifty  feet,  their  aggregate  length  is  over  thirty  miles. 
But  the  magnificent  parkway  known  as  the  Midway  Plaisance,  which  con- 


102  THE  NEW  PARKS. 

nects  the  two  divisions  of  the  Great  South  Park,  has  a  wi  1th  of  nearly 
800  feet  and  is  a  mile  long.  The  art  of  the  landscape  gardener  has 
contributed  liberally  to  the  plan  and  adornment  of  this  unique  and 
beautiful  addition  to  Chicago's  park  system,  and  the  result  is  seen  in  one 
of  the  most  valuable  and  attractive  ornaments  of  the  Lake  City. 

The  four  parkways  which  form  the  main  approaches  to  the  principal 
pleasure  ground  of  the  Buffalo  park  system  are  4  miles  long  and  200  feet 
wide.  They  are  handsomely  laid  out,  with  six  lines  of  shade  trees,  and 
have,  at  intervals  of  about  2,C00  feet,  wide  circular  and  square  plazas  taste- 
fully laid  out  in  parterres  and  shaded  walks. 

With  very  rare  exceptions  wherever  parks  have  been  established,  the 
parkway  is  now  regarded  as  an  indispensible  adjunct  and,  as  in  the  case  of 
Chicago  and  Buffalo,  a  generous  policy  has  prevailed  in  the  appropriation 
of  the  necessary  area  of  land  for  their  construction.  In  the  chief  Euro- 
pean cities  the  approaches  to  the  parks,  the  grand  avenues  and  boulevards, 
are  as  much  the  objects  of  liberal  expenditure  and  artistic  decoration  as  the 
parks  with  which  they  are  connected.  And  so  will  it  be  with  the  Mosholu 
and  the  Bronx  and  Pelham  parkways,  which  xinite  our  two  great  inland 
and  glorious  seaside  pleasure  grounds. 

THE   MOSHOLU   PARKWAY. 

The  Mosholu  Parkway,  which  forms  the  connecting  link  between  Van 
Cortlandt  and  Bronx  parks,  has  an  area  of  80  acres,  is  600  feet  wide  and  a 
mile  long.  It  is  located  on  both  sides  of  and  includes  Middle  Brook  Park- 
way, Brook  street,  and  a  small  tributary  stream  which  courses  nearly 
through  its  centre,  and  which  can  be  so  utilized  in  the  general  design  as  to 
form  one  of  its  most  attractive  features.  There  is  no  need  to  tax  the 
resources  of  landscape  gardening  for  its  ornamentation,  or  extravagant 
expenditure  in  its  construction  at  the  commencement  or  for  many  years  to 
come.  Tree  planting  in  lines  bordering  the  roads,  the  avenues  and  the 
walks  that  will  be  laid  out  with  plots  and  grassy  margins,  will  be  all  that 
is  necessary  till  with  the  lapse  of  time  comes  a  taste  and  a  desire  for  more 
expensive  cultivation  and  higher  artistic  embellishment.  It  would  require, 
of  course,  large  appropriations  to  make  the  Mosholu  and  the  Bronx  and 
Pelham  parkways  as  magnificent  approaches  to  our  three  great  parks  as  the 
Avenue  de  I'Imperatrice  is  to  that  of  the  Bois  de  Boulogne;  but  the  time 
will  come,  and  it  is  not  far  off,  when  our  parkways  will  have  statuary  and 
fountains  and  such  other  works  of  art  as  public  or  private  taste  may  sug- 
gest and  provide.  At  comparatively  small  expense,  the  natural  brook 
which  Mosholu  Parkway  already  possesses  can  be  enlarged,  increased  in 
volume  by  the  aid  of  an  artesian  well,  carried  quite  through  the  centre  of 
the  tract,  and  there  is  a  sufficient  descent  to  the  grade  to  allow  of  the  con- 
struction of  dams  enclosing  lakelets,  the  overflow  of  which  might  be  made 
to  form  miniature  cascades,  spanned  by  rustic  bridges.  Such  ornamental 
attractions  are  possible  in  the  plan  of  this  broad  parkway,  which  possesses 
natural  conditions  that  permit  of  a  wide  scope  for  the  invention  and  fancy 
of  the  landscape  architect. 


THE  NEW"  PARKS.  105 

THE  BRONX  AND  PELHAM  PARKWAY. 

The  Bronx  and  Pelham  Parkway  traverses  a  tract  of  country  differing 
materially  in  its  topographical  characteristics  from  that  through  which 
the  Mo3hoIu  has  been  laid.  It  passes  through  a  comparatively  level  section 
with  gently  undulating  surface  throughout  almost  its  entire  length  of  two- 
and-a-half  miles.  It  begins  atj  the  junction  of  Fordham  and  Pelham 
avenues  with  Pelham  Bay  Park  and  takes,  on  the  southerly  line  of  the 
avenue,  a  continuous  strip  300  feet  up  to  the  point  of  crossing  by  the  Kings- 
bridge  road.  From  this  point  to  its  junction  with  the  Bronx  Park  it 
extends  along  the  avenue  in  such  manner  as  to  allow  the  avenue  to  cross  it 
diagonally  from  end  to  end  between  the  Kingsbridge  and  the  Boston  Post 
roads,  from  which  point  a  strip  300  feet  wide  is  taken  on  the  northerly  side 
of  the  avenue  as  far  as  the  boundary  of  the  park.  Throughout,  its  uniform 
width  is  4C0  feet,  in  which  is  included  the  Fordham  and  Pelham  avenue, 
the  whole  area  taken  being  ninety-five  acres,  affording  ample  space  not 
only  for  two  broad  drives  for  all  classes  of  vehicles,  but  a  bridle  path, 
three  or  more  walks  and  bordering  margins  of  grass  or  shrubs  as  taste  may 
determine. 

If  entrusted  to  competent  hands  this  parkway  could  be  made  one  of  the 
finest  avenues  in  the  world,  and  when  this  part  of  Westchester  is  embraced 
within  the  city  limits  the  tax  income  which  will  be  collected  on  the 
increased  and  advancing  value  of  the  bordering  lands  will  prove  a  prolific 
source  of  revenue  to  the  municipal  treasury. 

A  glance  at  the  map  accompanying  this  work  shows  the  extent  of  terri- 
tory embraced  within  the  wide  sweep  of  these  great  avenues,  which,  with 
the  addition  of  the  parks  will  afford  a  continuous  drive  of  ten  miles,  extend- 
ing in  one  unbroken  line  from  the  extreme  northern  boundary  of  Van 
Cortlandt  clear  over  to  the  eastern  extremity  of  the  Pelham  where  its 
shores  are  washed  by  the  waters  of  the  Sound.  And  here  along  the 
sea-girt  margin  of  this,  the  greatest  of  our  parks,  will  one  day  be  constructed 
a  drive  that  should  be  a  continuation  of  the  Pelham  Parkway  and  the 
views  from  which  will  far  surpass  those  of  the  much -vaunted  Riverside  Park 
and  Drive,  that  have  already  cost  the  city  over  $6,000,000,  and  still  more 
to  come. 

THE  CROTONA  PARKWAY. 

The  Crotona  Parkway,  which  has  a  width  of  200  feet  and  a  length  of 
three-quarters  of  a  mile,  unites  the  Bronx  and  Crotona  parks  and  will  add 
largely  to  the  value  of  real  estate  in  this  locality.  It  commences  at  the 
junction  of  the  Southern  Boulevard  with  the  Bronx  Park  at  Kingsbridge 
road  crossing,  thence  southerly  along  the  easterly  side  of  the  Southern 
Boulevard,  and  parallel  with  aud  touching  the  same,  a  strip  of  land  100  feet 
wide,  as  an  addition  to  the  width  of  said  Boulevard,  said  strip  continuing 
southerly,  and  of  its  full  width  of  100  feet  to  a  point  100  feet  south  of  the 
southerly  line  of  Fairmount  avenue,  from  thence  westerly  widening  Fair- 
mount  avenue  on  its  southerly  side  by  a  strip  100  feet  in  width,  to  a  point 
100  feet  westerly  of  the  northeasterly  corner  of  Tremont  Park,  and  at  right 
angles  northerly  from  said  northeast  corner  of  park  aforesaid-  from  thenoe 


1P6  THE  NEW  PARKS. 

in  a  straight  line  parallel  with  said  right  angle  SCO  feet  in  width,  touching 
the  park  and  the  street  running  easterly  of  the  park.  In  its  course  it  absorbs 
the  Boulevard,  making  as  stated  a  width  of  200  feet. 

If  the  improvement  of  this  particular  section  of  the  city  is  made  on  a  scale 
commensurate  with  the  character  of  this  fine  avenue  and  the  parks  of  which 
it  is  the  connecting  link,  there  should,  as  there  doubtless  will,  be  a  marked 
and  rapid  increase  in  land  values  along  the  line  and  in  the  immediate 
vicinity  of  the  parkways.  With  the  exception  of  the  Mosholu  and  Pelham 
parkways  it  is  the  broadest  avenue  in  the  city,  exceeding  by  50  feet  the 
widest  boulevards  south  of  the  Harlem.  It  is,  therefore,  capable  of  a  greater 
degree  of  improvement  than  any  of  these,  and  property  along  its  front  will 
reach  higher  values  and  contribute  correspondingly  larger  taxes  to  the  city. 


HISTORY  OF  THE  MOYEMENT  FOR 
NEW  PARKS. 


ITS  FRIENDS  AND  TOES. 


The  Contest  in  the  Legislature  and  Before  the  Courts. 


INCEPTION  OF  THE   PROJECT. 

In  June  of  1881  the  writer  of  these  pages  directed  his  special  attention  to 
the  question  of  public  parks ,  in  furtherance  of  a  purpose  which  he  had  enter- 
tained for  several  years  of  advocating  an  increase  of  the  park  area  of  the 
metropolis,  and  organizing  a  movement  to  bring  about  a  result  so  desirable 
for  its  sanitary  well-being  and  the  promotion  of  its  material  interests. 
With  that  object  in  view  he  collected  from  official  and  other  sources  a  large 
amount  of  statistical  and  general  information  on  the  subject,  believing  that 
the  time  was  propitious  for  the  initiation  of  a  movement  in  that  direction. 
The  investigations  which  he  made  satisfied  him  that  the  park  area  for  many 
years  prior  to  1881  was  wholly  inadequate  for  the  requirements  of  the  popu- 
lation and  that  an  increase  in  the  extent  and  number  of  our  lireatning 
places  was  imperatively  demanded  by  the  present  as  well  as  by  the  future 
needs  of  our  metropolis. 

The  data  in  his  possession  proved  that  New  York  was  not  only  behind 
the  great  capitals  of  Europe,  but  that  since  Central  Park  was  established, 
more  than  a  quarter  of  a  century  ago,  we  have  been  left  far  in  the  rear  by 
Philadelphia,  Chicago,  Boston,  Buffalo  and  other  American  cities.  His 
investigation  also  elicited  the  fact  that  less  than  "200  acres  had  been 
added  to  our  park  area  since  the  passage  of  the  Central  Park  act  in  1853,' 
and  that  had  New  York  public  grounds  proportioned  to  her  population,  as 
compared  with  these  cities,  it  would  have  from  7.000  to  8,000  instead  of 
1,100  acres. 

As  the  matter,  however,  was  financial  as  well  as  sanitary,  particular 
inquiry  was  made  into  the  question  of  expense,  and  with  the  most  satisfac- 
tory and  conclusive  results  in  favor  of  the  movement.  An  examination  of 
official  statistics  proved  that  by  the  creation  of  Central  Park  the  city  had 
gained,  in  the  enhanced  value  of  surrounding  property  and  the  increased 
revenue  derivable   therefrom,  fl7,COO,000  over   and   above   the  natural 


lOS  THE  NEW  PARKS. 

increase  from  the  growth  of  population  and  the  ordinary  advance  in  real 
estate  values ;  and  this  despite  the  enormous  outlay  necessary  to  convert 
the  -worst  description  of  waste  land  into  an  ornamental  park,  to  defray 
the  extravagance  of  its  embellishment  and  its  costly  maintenance  for  many 
yeare.  Ibis  $17,000,000,  be  it  remembered,  was  in  hard  cash  in  excess  of 
all  expenses,  and,  in  addition  to  this  immense  sum,  the  city  was  in  posses- 
sion of  864  acres,  worth,  as  estimated,  TWO  hundred  millions  of  dollars 

WHOLLY  KREK  OP  COST. 

After  a  careful  study  of  the  whole  subject  the  writer  was  convinced  that 
an  enlargement  of  our  park  area  would  be  attended  by  results  no  less  satis- 
factory and  conclusive;  in  a  word,  that  the  city's  experience  in  the  case  of 
Central  Park  would  be  repeated  on  a  larger  scale ;  that  the  extension  of 
our  park  domain  need  not  cost  the  city  a  single  dollar,  but  that  on 
the  contrary  it  would  be  a  source  of  profit ;  that  it  would  add  greatly  to  its 
embellishment  and  attractiveness ;  promote  the  health  and  physical  develop- 
ment of  the  rising  and  succeeding  generations:  improve  our  sanitary 
condition,  and  contribute  to  the  recreation  and  social  enjoyment  of  the 
hundreds  of  thousands  of  our  toiling  masses. 

SUITABLE   sites. 

Having  collected  and  arranged  this  information  in  the  form  of  newspaper 
articles  he  was  fortunate  in  securing,  as  a  medium  of  communication  with 
the  public,  the  columns  of  the  New  York  Herald.  In  the  descriptions  of 
the  sites,  which  were  illustrated  with  a  map  show^ing  the  most  suitable 
tracts  for  parks,  he  advocated  the  acquisition  of  at  least  four  or  five  thou- 
sand additional  acres  beyond  the  Harlem  River  and  in  the  adjacent  terri- 
tory of  Westchester  County.  In  one  of  these  articles  it  was  stated,  in  refer- 
ence to  the  extension  of  the  northern  boundaries  of  the  city,  that  "within 
the  newly-acquired  territory  and  in  that  immediately  contiguous  can  be 
found  available  locations  admirably  adapted  to  the  purpose  and  from  which , 
two  sites  containing  from  1,5C0  to  2,C00  acres  each  may  be  obtained  at  a 
comparatively  moderate  cost."  It  was  further  stated  that  "  the  withdrawal 
of  so  much  land  from  the  real  estate  market  would  alone  materially  enhance 
the  value  of  the  remaining  territory,  thus  enabling  the  city  to  derive  a 
largely  augmented  income  therefrom." 

The  advantages  of  such  parks  was  dwelt  upon  at  length,  and  it  was  urged 
that  in  the  selection  of  land  for  a  park  on  the  Sound  the  site  "should  be 
near,  or  include  Hutchinson  River,  a  little  to  the  south  of  New  Rochelle, 
and  that  it  might  be  so  arranged  as  to  include  one  or  more  of  the  islands  on 
the  Sound  which  are  now  connected  by  causeways.  These  grounds,"  it 
was  added,  "should  be  rural  parks,  not  artificial  constructions  requiring 
the  expenditure  of  millions  of  dollars  without  corresponding  benefit  to  the 
people.  Extensive  and  well-shaded  groves,  running  waters,  widened  here 
and  there  in  their  course  into  miniature  lakes,  broad  tracts  of  meadow  land 
for  healthful  exercise  in  athletic  sports,  camping,  parade  and  rifle  grounds ; 
quiet  little  dells  and  nooks  for  picnic  parties  ;  in  a  word,  great  health-giving 
resorts  for  the  whole  people."  The  sites  selected  and  shown  on  the  map 
published  at  the  time  were  the  same  as  those  subsequently  chosen  by  the 


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THE  NEW  PARKS.  Ill 

Commission  appointed  under  the  act,  with  such  necessary  modifications  in 
boundaries  as  were  deemed  advisable. 

THE  NEW  YOBK  PARK  ASSOCIATION. 

In  the  course  of  his  iuquiries  foi*  a  map  showing  the  territory  between 
the  Huason  and  the  Sound  the  writer  made  the  acquaintance  of  Mr.  Joseph  S. 
Wood,  who  took  a  warm  interest  in  the  success  of  the  project  and  to  whom 
was  communicated  the  intention  to  organize  a  movement  for  the  increase 
of  the  park  area  of  the  city  by  the  acquisition  of  the  most  suitable  sites 
north  of  the  Harlem  and  the  adjacent  part  of  Westchester  County.  Mr. 
Wood  cordially  offered  his  services  in  the  prosecution  of  the  work,  and  the 
CO  operation  of  several  gentlemen  friendly  to  the  movement  having  been 
obtained,  a  call  for  an  informal  meeting  at  the  Fifth  Avenue  Hotel  was 
issued,  about  two  hundred  invitations  being  sent  out.  The  use  of  a  parlor 
was  obtained  through  the  kind  efforts  of  Mr.  Charles  Crary,  and  at  this 
meeting  the  initiatoi-y  steps  were  taken  for  the  formation  of  "The  New 
York  Park  Association,"  which  was  organized  on  the  26th  of  November, 
1881,  the  following  officers  elected  and  Executive  Committee  appointed  : 
Waldo  Hutchins,  president ;  L.  R.  Marsh,  vice-president  ;  W.  W.  Niles, 
treasurer  ;  John  MuUaly,  secretary  ;  Chas.  L.  Tiffany,  John  E.  Develin, 
H.  B.  Claflin,  Major-General  Shaler,  W.  E.  Conner,  Henry  L.  Hoguet, 
David  Dows,  S.  R.  Pilley,  Wm.  Cauldwell,  Chas.  Crary,  Gustav  Schwab, 
Lewis  G.  Morris,  Franklin  Edson,  Geo.  W.  McLean,  Isaac  Bell,  Leonard 
Jerome,  Augustus  Schell.  Jordan  Li.  Mott,  Egbert  L.  Viele,  Joseph  F. 
Wood,  J.  M.  Carnochan,  M.D. ;  John  Fitch,  H.  P.  De  Graaf,  Lewis  May, 
Chas.  J.  Stephens. 

At  this  meeting  the  writer,  officiating  as  secretary,  read  a  detailed 
statement,  in  which  the  reasons  for  the  movement  and  "  the  imperative 
necessity  of  providing  for  the  present  and  future  wants  of  our  rapidly 
increasing  population  in  the  important  matter  of  park  area,"  were  set  forth 
at  length.  Facts  and  figures  were  presented  showing  the  deficiency  of 
New  York  as  compared  with  other  great  centres  of  population,  and  an 
addition  to  the  park  area  of  the  city  of  at  least  four  thousand  acres 
earnestly  advocated.  Stirring  addresses  were  made  at  this  and  other 
meetings  by  Messrs.  Luther  R.  Marsh,  Waldo  Hutchins,  W.  W.  Niles, 
Joseph  S.  Wood,  Chas.  Crary  and  E.  L.  Viele.  The  statement  pre- 
sented by  the  secretary  was  on  motion  adopted  "as  embodying  the  views 
of  the  meeting,"  and  he  was  "requested  to  prepare  it,  with  such  additional 
matter  as  he  might  deem  advisable  for  publication  in  pamphlet  form." 

Ten  thousand  copies  were  printed  a  few  weeks  thereafter,  and  the 
greater  part  sent  through  the  mails  to  the  press,  to  prominent  citizens  and 
to  representative  man  of  all  classes,  to  clergymen,  school  teachers,  officers 
and  managers  of  benevolent  institutions,  presidents  of  banks  and  insur- 
ance companies,  members  of  the  various  Exchanges,  State  and  city  officials, 
judges,  athletic  clubs,  officers  of  trade  and  other  societies,  etc.  In  this 
way  and  through  the  columns  of  the  daily  press,  which  gave  a  liberal  por- 
tion of  their  space  to  the  proceedings  of  the  Park  Association  and  friendly 


112  THE  ISEW  PARKS. 

approval  of  its  work,  much  valuable  and  interesting  information  on  the 
question  was  given  to  the  public. 

PRELIMINABT  WORK. 

Encouraged  by  the  general  favor  and  support  and  the  decided  interest, 
manifested  in  the  progress  of  the  movement,  the  Association  determined 
that  an  effort  should  be  made  during  the  legislative  session  of  1882  to 
secure,  if  possible,  the  passage  of  two  bills,  one  appropriating  the  Van. 
Cortlandt  Park  and  the  other  appointing  a  Commission  "  to  select  and 
locate  such  lands  in  the  Twenty- third  and  Twenty-fourth  Wards,  and 
vicinity  thereof,  as  they  might  deem  advisable,  for  one  or  more  public 
parks  and  a  parade  ground,  and  to  make  a  report  thereof  at  the  earliest 
day  practicable." 

The  Law  Committee,  to  which  the  preparation  of  those  bills  was 
intrusted,  consisted  of  Messrs.  Marsh,  DeveUn,  Niles,  Wood,  Crary,  McLean 
and  MuUaly. 

In  the  performance  of  this  important  work  several  meetings  were  held, 
and  the  proposal  to  locate  a  great  park  on  the  Sound  was  warmly  dis- 
cussed, and  aroused  a  strong  and  persistent  opposition.  The  fact  that  it 
would  be  outside  of  the  city  limits  and  beyond  municipal  jurisdiction 
was  urged  against  any  effort  in  that  direction  as  a  waste  of  time  and 
labor  until  that  part  of  v»  estchester  was  anaexed  to  the  city.  In  reply 
to  this  argument  the  friends  of  the  waterside  park  contended  that  as 
this  portion  of  Westchester  was  destined  to  become  a  part  of  New  York 
in  the  near  future,  it  was  true  economy  to  secure  the  land  at  once  while 
it  could  be  had  at  the  minimum  value,  instead  of  waiting  five  or  ten 
years  when  it  could  not,  in  all  probability,  be  purchased  at  thrice  the 
price.  The  affirmative  of  the  proposition  was  sustained  by  Messrs.  Wood, 
Marsh,  Crary,  Filley  and  Mullaly,  Messrs.  Wood  and  Crary  being  partic- 
ularly strenuous  and  unyielding  on  this  point.  A  compromise  was  finally 
agreed  to,  by  which,  as  stated,  two  bills  were  prepared,  accompanied  by  a 
memorial,  which  impressed  upon  the  Legislature  the  policy  of  acquiring 
at  least  four  thousand  acres  for  public  parks,  and  the  urgent  necessity  of 
securing  at  once  the  tract  described  in  the  bill,  and  which  has  been  appro- 
priated by  the  act  of  1884  under  the  title  of  Van  Cortlandt  Park.  The 
special  attention  of  the  Legislature  was  directed  to  the  great  advantage  of 
"a  grand  park  with  a  water  front  on  Long  Island  Sound,  one  which,"  in 
the  language  of  the  iremorial,  "should  be  the  people's  own,  a  resort  for 
picnics  and  excui-sions,  a  place  where  they  could  enjoy  the  pleasures  of 
boating,  bathing,  fishing,  etc."  Reference  was  also  made  to  "  the  advisa- 
bility of  constructing  parkways  "  and  of  the  utilization  "  of  some  of  ths 
avenues  and  boulevards  now  existing  for  such  purpose."  The  bills  were 
placed  in  the  hands  of  Senator  Treanor  and  Assemblyman  Breen,  and,  after 
several  attempts  to  obtain  a  hearing  from  the  Committee  on  Cities,  the 
association  arrived  at  the  inevitablo  conclusion  that  nothing  was  to  be 
expected  from  the  committees  to  which  the  bills  were  referred,  and  they 
decided  to  postpone  the  matter  to  the  next  meeting  of  the  Legislature. 


o 

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THE  NEW  PARKS.  115 

A  WORTHLESS  RESOLUTION. 

Before  the  close  of  the  session,  however,  Mr.  Breen  introduced  a  resolu- 
tion appointing  the  Mayor,  the  Commissioner  of  Public  Works,  the  Presi- 
dent of  the  Board  of  Aldermen  and  the  President  of  the  Tax  Department, 
a  Commission  to  report  on  the  advisability  of  a  public  park  in  the  annexed 
district  and  the  adjacent  portion  of  Westchester,  such  report  to  be  made 
within  thirty  days. 

It  is  needless  to  state  that  such  a  Commission  could  not,  even  if  it  were 
friendly  to  the  measure,  give  it  that  consideration  and  attention  which  was 
essential  to  a  proper  understanding  and  appreciation  of  the  subject,  and 
so,  after  two  or  three  meetings  at  the  Mayor's  office,  the  affair  resulted  in  a 
report  to  the  Legislature  to  the  effect  that  the  time  allowed  was ''inade- 
quate for  the  examination  of  the  matter,  and  to  enable  them  to  form  any 
fixed  opinion  as  to  where  the  park  or  parks  should  be  located. " 

The  meetiHgs,  ot  which  three  were  held  in  March,  18S3,  afforded  the 
friends  of  the  movement  a  cliance  to  give  much  valuable  information  to 
the  public,  and  it  is  needless  to  say  they  fully  availed  themselves  of  the 
opportunity.  At  these  meetings  effective  speeches  were  made  by  Messrs. 
Marsh,  Wiles,  Wood,  Dr.  J.  M.  Carnochan  and  Judge  Hall,  and  a  new 
impetus  was  given  to  the  project,  despite  the  pronounced  opposition  of  its 
enemies. 

Although  the  efforts  of  the  association  to  secure  even  the  consideration 
of  the  Legislature  of  1883  had  failed,  the  work  was  prosecuted  with  unwa- 
vering vigor,  and  in  18S3,  through  the  well-directed  efforts  of  the  Hon. 
Leroy  B.  Crane,  who  represented  the  Twenty-third  Assembly  District,  and 
whose  friendly  services  in  favor  of  the  measure  were  enlisted  by  Mr. 
Marsh,  a  bill  was  passed  authorizing  the  Mayor  "  to  nominate,  subject  to 
confirmation  by  the  Board  of  Aldermen,  a  Commission  of  seven  citizens 
whose  duty  it  shall  be  to  select  and  locate  such  lands  in  the  Twenty-third 
and  Twenty  fourth  Wards  of  the  city  of  New  York  and  in  the  vicinity 
thereof,  as  may,  in  their  opinion,  be  proper  and  desirable  to  be  preserved 
and  set  apart  for  one  or  more  public  parks  for  said  city." 

APPOINTMENT  OF  THE   NEW  PARKS  COMMISSION. 

The  bill  became  a  law  on  the  18th  of  April,  and  on  the  1st  of  May  the 
following  gentlemen  were  appointed  by  Mayor  Edson  and  confirmed  by 
the  Board  of  Aldermen  :  Augustus  Schell,  Waldo  Hutchins,  General  Fitz- 
gerald, C.  L..  Tiffany,  W.  W.  Niles,  L.  R.  Marsh  and  G.  W.  McLean.  As 
Mr.  Schell  was  on  the  eve  of  his  departure  for  Europe,  he  resigned,  and 
Mr.  Thomas  J.  Crombie  was  appointed  in  his  place. 

Having  taken  the  required  oath  the  Commission  was  duly  organized  by 
the  unanimous  election  of  Hon.  L.  R.  Marsh  as  president,  in  recognition 
of  his  unceasing  and  active  interest  in  the  movement  from  the  beginning. 
C.  L.  Tiffany  was  elected  vice-president,  General  Fitzgerald,  treasurer,  and 
John  Mullaly,  secretary. 

The  Commission,  being  now  organized,  proceeded  immediately  with  the 
work  for  which  it  had  been  appoiate;!,  and  on  the  26th  of  May  visited  in  a 
body  and  examined  the  various  trac'sof  land  which  were  considered  suit- 


116  THE  NEW  PARKS. 

able  for  park  purposes.  Their  tour  of  inspection  took  in  the  Twenty-third 
and  Twenty-fourth  Wards  and  a  part  of  the  adjacent  territory  of 
Westchester. 

THE  REPORT. 

On  the  1st  of  June  the  Commission  inspected  the  tract  now  known  as 
Van  Cortlandt  Park,  and  adjourned  on  the  loth  for  the  summer  vacation. 
During  the  interval  the  writer  entered  into  correspondence  with  the 
park  authorities  of  Paris,  London,  Dublin,  Berlin,  Vienna,  Amsterdam  and 
Brussels  in  Europe;  and  in  the  United  States,  with  the  Park  Commissioners 
of  Chicago,  Washington,  Boston,  St.  Louis,  Philadelphia,  Brooklyn,  BufiFalo 
and  San  Francisco.  Through  the  com-tesy  of  these  officials  he  obtained 
much  valuable  and  interesting  information  in  the  form  of  annual  reports 
and  other  documents.  This  information  was  turned  to  good  account  in  the 
preparation  of  the  elaborate  report  to  the  Legislature  of  1884,  describing 
and  illustrating  the  sites  of  the  new  parks  and  presenting  in  more  extended 
detail  and  with  much  additional  matter  the  facts  and  statistics  embraced  in 
the  pamphlet  issued  in  1883. 

The  contrast,  as  shown  in  the  report,  between  New  York  and  Philadelphia 
as  well  as  other  American  cities,  was  decidedly  unfavorable  to  our 
metropolis,  while  in  comparison  with  the  great  European  capitals  its  park 
area  dwindled  into  absolute  insignificance. 

This  document  contained  217  octavo  pages  and  was  illustrated  with 
thirty  engravings  of  views  in  the  new  parks.  It  also  included  a 
reduced  copy  of  the  map  compiled  by  the  engineer  of  the  Commission, 
General  James  C.  Lane,  who  was  appointed  on  the  llth  of  October,  1883, 
and  whose  services  were  so  inadequately  rewarded  with  the  meagre  appro- 
priation of  a  thousand  dollars;  but  to  General  Lane  the  question  of 
compensation  was  of  slight  consideration  in  compirison  with  the  importanco 
of  the  work  with  which  he  had  been  intrusted.  His  experience  in  the  art 
of  civil  engineering  and  landscape  gardening,  and  the  fine  taste  which  he 
brough:  to  the  practice  of  hi^  profession,  qualified  him  in  an  espacial  degree 
for  the  performance  of  this  task.  In  speaking  of  his  reputation  as  an 
engineer  it  may  not  be  out  of  place  to  add  that  he  has  a  brilliant  record  of 
services  in  tha  principal  battles  of  the  late  civil  war  from  Bull  Run  to  the 
surrender  at  Appomatox. 

PUBLIC  MEETINGS. 

The  Commission,  as  stated  iu  the  report,  announced,  through  the  daily 
press,  that  public  meetings  would  be  held,  at  which  ample  opportunity  for  a 
hearing  would  be  given  to  all  who  desired  to  present  their  views,  or  to  offer 
suggestions  in  relation  to  the  proposed  extension  of  the  park  area  of  the 
city,  the  location  of  sites,  the  recommendation  of  particular  tracts  of  land 
and  such  other  considerations  as  they  desired  to  bring  before  them.  Several 
meetings  were  held  in  the  City  Hall  and  correspondence  was  freely  invited 
from  parties  interested  in  the  subject.  These  meetings  were  largely 
attended,  and  of  the  forty  or  fifty  persons  by  whom  they  were  addressed 
all  were  unanimously  in  favor  of  the  enlargement  of  the  park  area  of  the 
city,  although  differing  in  opinion  as  to  the  location  of  the  sites  and  the 


THE  NEW  PARKS.  117 

extent  of  land  required.  Local  interests  demandec!  parks  in  particular 
sections,  and  while  the  majority  evidently  regarded  the  subject  from  a 
metropolitan  standpoint,  favoring  two  or  more  large  parks,  others  advo- 
cated the  distribution  of  the  proposed  increase  in  the  foi'm  of  many  and 
smaller  parks  and  squares. 

During  the  progress  of  this  public  discussion  numerous  letters  were 
received  containing  suggestions  and  recommendations  of  particular  tracts, 
and  several  visits  of  inspection  were  made  before  the  sites  were  finally 
selected.  The  whole  subject  was  fully  and  minutely  discussed  at  the 
executive  meetings  of  the  Commission  and  the  report  and  map  adopted  by 
a  unanimous  vote.  Mr.  Marsh,  by  whom  the  bill  for  the  appropriation  and 
condemnation  of  the  various  tracts  of  land  embraced  within  the  several 
parks  and  parkwavs  had  been  carefully  prepared  and  revised,  proceeded  to 
Albany  on  the  23d  of  January,  1S84,  and  placed  copies  of  the  report  and 
bill  in  the  hands  of  Hon.  G.  W.  Plunkitt,  of  the  Eleventh  Senatorial 
District,  and  Hon.  Walter  Howe,  of  the  Eleventh  Assembly  District. 

THE  ANTI-PARKS  WAR. 

Up  to  this  point  the  park  movement  had  met  with  comparatively  little 
opposition.  Much  work,  it  is  true,  was  necessary  to  carry  it  on  successfully, 
even  in  the  face  of  such  opposition  as  had  been  manifested.  But  the  pros- 
pect was  most  encouraging  and  victory  seemingly  assured.  Certainly 
none  of  the  friends  of  the  measure  were  prepared  for  the  bitter  disappoint- 
ment they  had  to  encounter. 

As  Mayor  Edson  had  been  and  still  was  a  member  of  the  Executive 
Committee  of  the  New  York  Park  Association,  and  as  he  had  taken  an 
active  interest  in  the  distribution  of  the  pamphlet  issued  in  18S2,  advocating 
an  addition  of  four  or  five  thousand  acres  to  the  park  area  of  the  city,  his 
fellow  members  reasonably  expected  his  continued  co-operation  and 
support.  Having  appoiated  the  Commission  and  been  invited  to  accompany 
them  in  their  tours  of  inrpection,  it  was  naturally  inferred  that  he  would 
give  the  weight  of  his  approval  and  official  influence  in  securing  the 
passage  of  the  bill  before  the  Legislature.  In  fact,  no  doubt  whatever  was 
entertained  on  the  matter.  This  confidence,  however,  was  rudely  dispelled 
by  his  unfriendly  attitude  after  the  presentation  of  the  report  and  bill  and 
by  his  open  and  active  hostility  to  its  passage.  He  made  it  a  matter  of 
discussion  in  the  weekly  meetings  of  the  heads  of  departments  held  in  his 
oflice,  which  resulted  in  the  adoption  of  two  resolutions  on  the  15th  of 
March,  the  first  of  which  objected  to  the  "  location,  extent  and  expense  of 
the  proposed  parks,"  the  second  favoring  the  acquisition  of  "  the  whole  or 
any  portion  of  the  land  designated  by  the  Commission  within  the  limits  of 
the  city,"  provided  the  necessary  power  of  approval  were  vested  in  the 
"  proper  authorities  of  the  city  and  the  Sinking  Fund  Commissioners." 

THE  PRESS  FOR  THE  PARKS. 

On  this  point,  however,  the  Mayor  found  that  the  press  instead  of  being 
in  accord  were  in  direct  conflict  witli  him  and  his  Cabinet.  The  Herald 
called  attention  to  the  fact  that  the  Commission  had  "received  the  approval 


118  THE  I^EW  PARKS. 

of  the  prominent  financiers  and  business  men  of  New  York  who  represent 
over  a  thousand  millions  of  dollars  in  real  estate  and  various  other  forms 
of  investment,  and  whose  property  will  bear  a  large  share  of  the  burden — 
if  burden  it  can  be  called— which  will  be  not  only  a  great  financial  gain  to 
the  city  treasury,  but  a  blessing  to  the  thousands  of  the  city's  toilers  and 
workers."  *  *  *  *  "  This  bill  provides,  as  in  the  case  of  the  Central 
Park,  for  the  appointment  of  Commissioners  by  the  General  Term  of  the 
Supreme  Court,  who  are  authorized  to  take  the  necessary  proceedings  to 
secure  possession  of  the  land.  Under  such  circumstances,  of  course,  the 
politicians  would  have  no  chance  and  so  they  are  opposed  to  this  beneficent 
measure  and  have  employed  the  Mayor's  Cabinet  as  a  convenient  tool  with 
which  to  give  it  a  death  blow.  But  the  public,  they  will  find,  will  have 
something  to  say  in  the  matter  yet." 

The  Times  urged  the  immediate  acquisition  of  the  lands  on  the  ground 
that  every  year's  delay  would  add  to  the  cost.  "We  are  forced,"  it  said, 
"  to  accept  the  mature  and  carefully  studied  conclusions  of  the  Commis- 
sion in  preference  to  the  off-hand  judgment  of  the  Mayor's  Cabinet.  Every 
precaution  should  be  taken  against  jobbery  and  land  speculation  at  the 
expense  of  the  city,  but  this  is  no  more  necessary  now  than  it  will  be 
in  the  future.  In  fact,  there  will  be  a  great  advantage  in  taking  the  whole 
domain  proposed  before  a  movement  is  produced  in  real  estate  vahies  by  a 
beginning  in  park  improvements  and  in  the  extension  of  rapid  transit 
facilities  through  the  annexed  district.  Now  is  plainly  the  time  to  acquire 
title  to  all  the  needed  lands,  and  those  designated  by  the  Commission  are 
all  desirable." 

The  World  said  that  "  the  approval  of  the  bill  relating  to  parks  in  the 
new  wards  will  give  general  satisfaction.  It  is  wise  to  provide  for  ample 
public  grounds  before  the  land  is  increased  in  value  by  improvements." 

NOW  IS  THE   TIME. 

The  Real  Estate  Record  and  Guids  was  equally  pronounced,  declar- 
ing that  "  it  is  clearly  unwise  to  wait  until  the  price  of  land  is  high  before 
providing  ourselves  with  plenty  of  park  room ; "  and  in  a  subsequent  article 
it  took  still  stronger  ground,  maintaining  that  "a  postponement  of  the 
improvement  for  another  year  will  cost  the  city  a  great  deal  of  money, 
for,'  it  added,  "  there  is  every  indication  that  a  rise  of  values  is  imminent 
in  all  the  suburbs  of  New  York.  The  metropjlis  of  the  United  States  has 
really  less  park  room  than  any  of  the  leading  capitals  of  the  world.  We 
have  no  parade  ground  for  our  militia,  nor  space  for  the  open  air  sport.- 
which  have  become  an  institution  in  this  country.  The  boys  and  girls  of 
our  public  schools  have  no  playgrounds.  The  young  fellows  in  our  New 
York  College  are  forced  to  go  to  Prospect  Park  to  play  lawn  tennis. 
*  *  *  It  is  clearly  unwise  to  wait  until  the  price  of  land  is  high  before 
providing  ourselves  with  plenty  of  room.  It  will  be  a  red  letter  day  for 
the  annexed  district  as  well  as  a  matter  for  congratulation  for  our  people 
generally  when  Governor  Cleveland  signs  the  admirable  park  bill  passed 
by  the  Legislature." 

The  Tribune  took  "  exception  to  the  opinion  of  the  Mayor  and  the  other 


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THE  NEW  PARKS.  12t 

city  oflBcials,  that  the  plan  of  acquiring  several  thousands  of  acres  of  lands 
for  parks  in  the  annexed  district  is  unwise,"  and  added  that,  "  on  the 
whole,  the  bill  was  a  good  one.  The  Mayor's  Cabinet  has  a  right  to  an 
adverse  opinion  beyond  doubt;  but  in  discussing  this  matter  the  Senate 
and  Assembly  Committees  on  Cities  should  not  be  entirely  guided  by  it.  They 
should  carefully  consider  also  the  fact  that  the  plan  has  the  earnest  and 
intelligent  approval  of  some  of  the  most  prominent  and  public-spirited 
citizens  of  New  York. " 

THE   COMMISSION  ENDORSED. 

The  Mail  and  Express,  which  has  been  the  constant  and  consistent 
friend  of  the  movement  from  the  beginning,  handled  the  enemies  of  the 
parks  vnthout  gloves.  "The  oppDsition,"  said  that  papar,  "  to  tha  splendid 
and  well-considered  scheme  for  new  parks  in  the  upper  wards  comes  mainly 
from  a  few  '  pernickety '  and  narrow-minded  officials,  and  from  persons 
whose  '  interests '  are  not  those  of  the  people.  Let  the  Legislature  earn  the 
gratitude  of  the  great  mass  of  New  Yorkers  by  passing  the  bill  recom- 
mended by  the  able  and  disinterested  Park  Commission,  whose  labors  are  at 
an  end.  And  let  legislators  remember  that  a  single  pig  squealing  under  a 
gate  makes  more  noise  than  a  thousand  quiet  people." 

"We  presume,"  said  the  Eoening  Post,  "  that  the  protest  of  that  curious 
body,  known  as  the  '  Mayor's  Cabinet,'  against  the  bill  pi-oviding  for 
public  parks  in  the  annexed  city  districts  will  have  little  weight  with  the 
Legislature.  That  bill  was  drawn  up  by  a  Commission  appointed  by  the 
Mayor  under  the  provisions  of  an  act  of  the  Legislature  and  was  the  result 
of  the  most  compstentand  careful  investigation  of  the  whole  subject.  The 
Commissioners  went  about  their  work  with  commendable  public  spirit,  and 
their  recommendations  have  met  the  warm  approval  of  our  most  eminent 
and  disinterested  citizens."  It  added  that  the  bill  was  a  carefully  consid- 
ered measure  and  has  met  "  its  chief  oppoiition  from  the  politicians  who 
dislike  it,  because  they  are  excluded  from  all  possibility  of  profiting  by  its 
provisions." 

The  Star  was  no  less  emphatic  on  the  subject  than  its  contemporaries^ 
insistiDg  that  "the  localities  chosen,  after  thorough  examination,  are 
ample,  accessible,  beautiful,  easy  to  care  for,  and  for  sale  at  a  reasonable 
cost.  *  *  »  *  New  York  of  the  present  needs  more  breathing  room. 
Shall  New  York  of  tho  future  be  stifled  as  now,  by  a  foolish,  niggardly 
and  short-sighted  policy?  On  grounds  of  future  morality,  health,  decency 
and  sound  business  judgment,  tbe  new  parks  should  be  secured  at  the 
earliest  possible  moment." 

SUPPORT  OF  SOLID  MEN. 

It  was  evident  from  the  decided  stand  taken  by  the  press  on  the  work  of 
the  Commission  that  the  Mayor  and  his  official  aids  could  not  look  to  that 
quarter  for  encouragement  or  support.  T j  add  to  the  perplexities  of  his 
position  he  had  received  a  letter  from  many  of  the  real  estate  owners,  bankers, 
lawyers  and  business  men ,  representing  over  a  billion  of  dollars  in  real 
estate — subsequently  swelled  by  additional  names  to  two  billions— directing 


133  THE  IsEW  PARKS. 

his  attention  to  the  unanswerable  arguments  and  solid  array  of  facts,  pre- 
sented in  the  report  to  the  Legislature,  pointing  out  the  danger  of  delay, 
insisting  that  the  purchase  of  more  park  room  was  more  imperative  now 
than  ever,  and  that  the  sooner  it  was  obtained  the  better. 

Prior,  however,  to  the  reception  of  this  communication  by  the  Mayor, 
circular  letters  had  been  addrossad  by  Mr.  Marsh  and  the  author  to  a 
large  number  of  representative  citizens,  a  copy  oi  the  report  accompanying 
each  letter,  inviting  an  expression  of  opinion  on  the  question  of  the 
enlargement  of  the  park  area  of  the  metropolis.  The  response  was  prompt, 
emphatic  and  decided.  The  writers  expressed  theii-  warm  approval  of  the 
movement,  and  urged  prompt  action  on  the  part  of  the  Legislature. 

In  a  hearing  before  the  Mayor  and  the  heads  of  departments  Mr.  Marsh 
made  a  powerful  argument,  sustained  by  a  formidable  array  of  facts,  but 
the  city  government  was  not  to  be  moved,  and  so  the  contest  was  carried 
to  Albany  before  the  Senate  and  Assembly  Committees  on  Cities,  and  into 
both  branches  of  the  Legislature. 

THE  CONTEST  IX  THE  LEGISLATURE. 

The  field  of  conflict  having  been  changed  from  New  York  to  the  State 
capitol  the  whole  strength  of  the  friends  of  the  parks  was  concentrated  at 
this  point,  and  throughout  they  were  effectually  aided  by  the  press  of  the 
city.  Messrs.  L.  R.  Marsh,  vV.  W.  Niles,  Waldo  Hutchins,  C.  D.  Burrill, 
the  writer  of  these  pages  and  others,  attended  the  several  committee  meet- 
mgs,  and  during  their  frequent  visits  to  Albany  fortified  their  friends  in 
the  Legislature,  who  were  fighting  the  battle  for  the  people's  parks,  with 
an  overwhelming  mass  of  facts  and  arguments.  Conspicuous  among  the 
champions  of  the  bill  were  Senator  Plunkitt,  by  whom  it  was  introducedi 
Senators  Ellsworth,  Qibbs,  Lowe,  Nelson,  Daggett,  Gilbert,  Otis,  Cullen, 
Thomas,  Wilson,  Kiernan,  Newbold  and  Van  Schaick.  On  the  evening  of  the 
passage  of  the  bill  there  was  a  spirited  and  prolonged  discussion,  in  which 
Senator  Ellsworth,  who  had  from  the  beginning  given  the  subjact  his  earnest 
attention  and  taken  an  active  part  in  promoting  the  success  of  the  measure, 
made  an  eloquent,  convincing  and  ringing  speech  in  every  way  worthy 
of  the  occasion.  It  was  one  of  the  most  powerful  arguments  which  this 
distinguished  Senator  and  learned  jurist  made  during  his  Senatorial  term 
and  was  listened  to  with  mark  id  attention  and  interest  th:'oughout.  Senator 
Ellsworth  was  ably  sustained  by  Senators  Plunkitt,  Lowe  and  Thomas, 
who  were  no  less  earnest  in  their  advocacy  of  the  bill  and  who  guarded  it 
against  the  peculiar  tactics  of  its  enemies  with  uatiring  vigilance. 

The  bill  was  vehemently  opposad  by  Senator  Daly,  and,  on  its  passage, 
his  vote  and  that  of  Senator  Jacobs  were  recorded  ia  the  negative,  the 
following  voting  in  the  affirmative:  Charles  S.  Bake?,  Shepard  B.  Bowen. 
Henry  J.  Coggeshall,  John  J.  Cullen,  Andrew  J.  Davidson,  Timothy  E. 
Ellsworth,  Edward  S.  Esty,  J.  Sloat  Fassatt,  Frederick  S.  Gibbs,  John  J. 
Kiernan,  Henry  R.  Low,  Michasl  C.  Murphy,  Henry  C.  Nelson,  Thomas  D. 
Newbold,  James  R.  Otis,  George  W.  Plunkett,  James  H.  Robb,  John  B. 
Thacher,  Edward  B.  Thomas,  John  Van  Shaick,  Commodore  P.  Vedder. 

The  service  rendered  on  this  occasion,  as  indeed  all  through  the  prog- 


THE  NEW  PARK 3.  123 

ress  cf  the  struggle  in  the  Senate,  by  Senator  Lowe,  the  consistent  advocate 
of  the  parks  throughout;  the  genial  and  earnest  Otis,  a  host  in  himself;  the 
untiring  Plunkitt,  alert  and  watchful;  the  calm  and  convincing  Gilbert, 
and  the  steadfast  and  reliable  Wilson,  Newbold,  Daggett,  Comstock,  Kier- 
nan  and  Baker  should  long  be  held  in  grateful  remembrance. 

THE   FBIENDS   OF  THE   PARKS— HON.    L.   R.   MARSH. 

Of  the  pre-eminent  part  which  Mr.  Marsh  took  in  the  work  done  at 
Albany,  as  well  as  in  the  city,  before  the  Committees  of  the  Legislature  and 
in  the  duties  of  the  Commission  in  New  York ;  in  his  able  arguments  before 
the  Supreme  Court ;  the  Mayor's  Cabinet ;  the  committee  meetings  of  the 
Real  Estate  Exchange ;  at  the  meetings  in  the  City  Hall;  in  the  preparation 
of  cases  and  legal  documents,  in  which  his  name  did  not  always  appear ;  his 
co-operation  with  the  author  in  the  work  of  the  report  to  the  Legislature ; 
and,  outside  of  this,  the  many  friends  he  made  and  enlisted  in  the  work — in 
all  this  and  still  more  that  was  essential  and  necessary  to  success,  Mr. 
Marsh's  services  were  invaluable  and  indispensable.  His  high  sense  of  per- 
sonal and  professional  honor,  his  integrity  of  character,  added  to  the 
enthusiastic  energy,  and  the  cheerful,  buoyant,  hopeful  spirit  with  which 
he  entered  into  the  movement;  the  unfailing  courtesy  with  which  he 
conducted  his  part  of  the  controversy — a  characteristic  that  has  won  for 
him  the  well- deserved  title  of  the  Chesterfield  of  the  New  York  bar— with  such 
elements  enlisted  in  the  cause  and  with  the  loyal  co-operation  of  those  who 
were  faithful  throughout,  refusing  to  be  swayed  by  threats,  or  cajoled  by 
promises— with  all  these  essentials  to  success,  more  potent  than  even  official 
patronage,  there  was  substantial  reason  for  the  abiding  confidence  which 
the  friends  of  the  cause  had  in  its  ultimate  and  complete  triumph. 

As  to  Mr.  Marsh's  share  in  the  work,  it  is  indeed  doubtful  if  in  the  legal 
ranks  of  the  city  there  could  be  found  one  who  would  have  been  willing 
through  six  years  of  steady,  unwavering,  chivalric  devotion  to  give,  with- 
out compensation,  his  talents  and  his  life-long  professional  experience  to 
the  promotion  and  success  of  this  great  movement  for  the  benefit  of  his 
fellow  citizens.  It  is  very  certain  that  no  other  volunteered,  or  was 
discovered. 

In  paying  this  just  tribute  to  Mr.  Marsh's  share  in  the  prosecution  and 
completion  of  the  work  in  which  he  had  S3  freely  and  generously  co-oper- 
ated through  years  of  contest  and  controversy,  the  author  desires  to  add 
the  meed  of  his  own  personal  admiration  and  respect.  During  all  this  time 
Mr.  Marsh's  sole  object  was  the  public  good,  and,  the  bill  once  passed,  his 
chief  solicitude  was  to  protect  the  public  iiterest  and  the  rights  which  the 
people  had  by  legislative  enactment  acquired  to  this  magnificent  park 
domain,  to  prevent  its  being  wrested  from  them  and  to  preserve  it  inviolate 
as  their  property  and  the  inheritance  of  the  generations  to  come.  To  this 
work  he  brought  all  the  resources  of  a  mind  stored  with  the  learning  of  a 
profession  in  which,  in  his  earlier  days,  he  was  associated  as  a  partner  with 
Massachusetts'  great  stateman,  the  illustrious  Webster.  And  now  in  his 
advanced  life,  which  has  already  passed  the  allotted  term,  like  Gladstone 
and  De  Lesseps,  he  still  bears  himself  erect  under  the  burden  of  accumu- 


124  THE  NEW  PARKS. 

iated  years,  possessing  the  physical  activity  and  the  undimmed  intellect  of 
a  robust  and  vigorous  manhood. 

HOX.    W.    W.    NILES. 

Nor  should  the  important  work  performed  by  that  able  lawyer,  Hon. 
W.  W.  Niles,  who  was  one  of  the  earliest,  most  earnest,  active  and  influ- 
ential advocates  of  the  new  parks,  be  forgotton,  for  his  practical  legisla- 
tive experience,  acquired  while  a  member  of  the  Legislature  some  years 
before,  and  his  extensive  acquaintance  among  the  leading  members  of  both 
branches,  rendered  his  personal  attendance  in  the  State  Capitol  at  this 
juncture  of  special  value.  In  fact,  all  through  the  six  years'  battle  waged 
for  the  people's  parks,  Mr.  Niles  was  ever  ready,  not  merely  with  his 
individual  efforts  and  influence,  but  he  gave  a  large  share  of  his  time  to 
the  work  of  the  Association  both  in  New  York  and  Albany,  writing  letters 
to  and  securing  the  support  of  members  of  the  Senate  and  Assembly, 
and  aiding  where  his  help  was  most  effective.  Of  all  the  advocates  of  the 
measure  there  was  none  whose  interest  and  confidence  in  its  success  was 
more  earnest  and  unflagging,  and  certainly  none  who  was  more  efficient 
in  making  converts  to  the  cause. 

HCN.  JOHN   E.  DEVELIN. 

Among  the  first  to  take  part  in  the  new  parks  movement  was  Hon. 
John  E.  Develin,  whose  experience  and  thorough  knowledge  of  muni- 
cipal law  has  placed  him  deservedly  among  the  leading  members  of  the 
legal  profession  in  a  city  distinguished  for  its  able  jurists.  To  those  who 
are  acquainted  with  this  gentleman  it  is  needless  to  say  that  from  the 
moment  the  project  was  presented  for  his  consideration  he  gave  it  his 
unqualified,  cheerful  and  hearty  indorsement  and  support.  From  the  com- 
mencement it  had  the  benefit  of  his  valuable  advice,  personal  influence  and 
professional  knowledge.  Mr.  Develin  attended  all  the  meetings  of  the  Law 
Committee  of  the  New  York  Park  Association  and  materially  assisted  in 
the  preparation  of  the  first  bills  introduced  in  the  Legislature,  where  he 
rendered  important  aid,  not  only  in  the  promotion  of  the  measure,  but  made 
an  effective  argument  before  the  Governor  the  day  on  which  the  bill 
received  his  signature.  In  fact,  throughout  the  whole  movement,  and 
notably  in  the  part  he  took  in  the  Sinking  Fund  case  in  the  Court  of  Common 
Pleas,  and  in  securing  the  necessary  application  of  the  Park  Department  for 
the  appointment  of  the  Commissioners  of  Appraisal,  his  services  were  most 
valuable. 

HON.  W.  HUTCHINS. 

In  the  early  stages  of  the  movement,  and  as  President  of  the  New  York 
Park  Association,  Hon.  Waldo  Hutchins  played  an  important  part, 
although  his  official  duties  as  member  of  Congress  made  it  impossible  for 
him  to  give  '^s  much  of  his  time  and  attention  to  the  success  of  the  measure 
as  he  desired.  Desoite  of  this,  however,  Mr.  Hutchins  rendered  timely 
assistance  at  Albany,  and  spoke  at  one  of  the  meetings  of  the  Assembly 
Committee  in  reply  to  the  arguments  of  Mayor  Edson  and  the  Corporation 


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THE  NEW  PARKS.  127 

Counsel  against  the  Park  bill,  On  that  occasion  Mr.  Hutchins  took  strong 
ground  against  the  effort  to  amend  the  bill  by  the  addition  of  a  clause 
assessing  the  surrounding  lands,  which  he  forcibly  denounced  as  a  vicious 
principle  and  a  great  injustice  that  in  many  cases  would  result  in  the  con- 
fiscation of  the  property  of  small  owners. 

The  movement  had  also  the  benefit  of  the  legal  experience  of  Mr.  Albon 
P.  Man,  who  in  an  able  letter  to  Hon.  Walter  Howe  exposed  the  utter 
weakness  and  fallacy  of  the  position  taken  by  the  opposition  on  the  Sink- 
ing Fund  question,  and  pointed  out  with  much  force  the  urgent  necessity 
for  an  increase  of  the  park  area  of  the  metropolis. 

HON.  O.  B.  POTTER. 

There  was  another  gentleman  who,  although  occupied  with  his  duties  as  a 
representative  in  Congress  and  with  the  responsibilities  inseparable  from 
the  care  of  large  business  interests,  found  time  to  say  and  write  many  a 
word  in  favor  of  the  new  park  domain.  Iq  two  strong  and  convincing 
letters  Hon.  O.  B.  Potter  insisted  on  the  acquisition  of  the  whole  park  area 
taken  by  the  act,  and  dwelt  with  particular  emphasis  on  the  value  of  Pel- 
ham  Bay  Park  as  a  most  essential,  indeed  as  an  indispensable  feature  in  the 
system.  To  this  welcome  aid  he  added  his  personal  influence,  and  in  his 
last  letter  he  took  occasion  to  say  that  he  was  in  favor  of  the  parks  because 
he  was  a  large  taxpayer  and  more  than  nine-tenths  of  his  property  were 
below  Fiftieth  street.  "  I  do  not  own,"  said  he,  "  and  have  not  the  slightest 
interest  in  any  land  in  Westchester  County,  except  my  country  seat  in  Sing 
Sing.  I  know  that  the  acquisition  of  these  new  parks  will  somewhat 
increase  taxes,  but  I  am  clear  that  they  will  add  more  to  the  value  of  my 
property  in  New  York  city  than  the  lossby  taxation;  I  shall  be  much  more 
than  repaid  by  the  increased  well-being  of  the  city  and  its  population." 

COL.  R.  M.  GALLA.WAY, 

To  say  that  Col.  R.  M.  Gallaway  was  an  earnest  supporter  of  the  move- 
ment even  before  the  New  York  Park  Association  was  organized  would  be 
but  a  feeble  recognition  of  his  active  and  effective  co-operation,  the  valuable 
assistance  which  he  rendered  at  important  stages  of  its  progress,  and  the 
friendly  aid  enlisted  in  its  service  through  his  efforts.  He  was  not  only  one 
of  its  earliest,  most  consistent  and  constant  friends,  but  he  was  an  enthusi- 
astic advocate  of  Pelham  Bay  Park,  especially  on  account  of  the  great 
advantages  presented  by  its  extended  frontage  on  the  Sound,  which,  he 
believed,  '•  could  not  fail  to  make  it  one  of  the  most  attractive  of  our  public 
pleasure  grounds,  particularly,"  as  he  said  in  his  letter  to  the  Governor 
while  the  bill  was  awaiting  his  signature,  "  for  the  great  body  of  our  work- 
ing people,  whose  various  trade  and  benevolent  societies,  in  addition  to  the 
athletic  clubs,  will  throng  it  daily  through  the  summer  season.  Better,"  as 
Mr.  Gallaway  sententiously  remarked,  "  for  the  city  to  buy  grass  lots  now 
than  lots  with  improvements  on  thum  hereafter. "  Throughout  the  whole 
contest  he  was  literally  a  tower  of  strength  to  the  cause. 

Particular  reference  has  been  made  to  the  connection  of  Mr.  Joseph  S. 
Wood  with  the  project,  the  prominent  part  he  took  as  a  member  of  the 


128  THE  NEW  PARKS. 

association  and  in  its  committee  work,  but  his  able  letters  addressed  to 
Mayor  Grace  during  the  contest  with  that  offljial  are  no  less  deserving  of 
special  mention.  His  three  communications  were  unanswerable  ;  though  it 
must  be  admitted  that  arguments,  whether  oral  or  written,  had  no  etfact  in 
that  quarter.  Yet,  if  they  failed  there,  they  carried  conviction  to  impartial 
minds,  and  wherever  they  were  read  tended  to  strengthen  the  movement. 

AN  UNJUST  CHARGE  EEPELLED. 

As  the  charge  of  personal  interest  has  bec-n  freely  and  unscrupulously 
made  against  the  park  movement,  it  should  not  be  dismissed  with  a  simple 
exoneration  of  the  parties  who  have  been  meanly  and  falsely  accused  of 
having  been  engaged  in  a  scheme  to  pass  off  their  lands  on  the  city.  Now, 
as  there  cannot  be  parks  without  land,  as  they  cannot  be  built  up  in  the 
air,  it  was  necessary  that  somebody's  land  should  be  taken,  the  only 
prerequisite  being  its  suitability  f  jr  the  purpose.  It  was  purely  a  question 
of  the  selection  of  the  best  sites,  the  chief  object  being  the  acquisitioa  of 
such  tracts  as  were  natural  parks  and  which  would  ba  ready  for  immediate 
occupation  and  use  the  moment  their  value  had  been  determined  and  they 
had  passed  into  the  actual  possession  of  the  city.  All  uhe  clamor  about 
"  land  speculation  "  and  schemes  to  foist,  by  legislative  means,  large  pieces 
of  property  upon  the  city  was  the  purest  invention— it  was  worse,  it  was 
downright  misrepresentation,  an  imposition  upon  the  credulity  of  the  public. 
A  large  number  of  landowners,  it  is  true,  endeavored  to  take  advantage  of 
the  opportunity  presented  by  the  park  movement  to  dispose  of  their  prop- 
erty, and  both  the  Commission  and  the  author  were  beset  and  over- 
whelmed by  applications  for  tho  examination  of  certain  so-called  "  desirable 
sites"  in  various  localities;  but  the  sole  considerations  in  determining  the 
selection  were  suitability,  location  and  economy. 

Upon  these  conditions,  and  upon  these  alone,  their  judgment  was  based. 
And  that  judgment,  while  it  may  not  have  pleased  certain  parties,  and 
while  it  aroused  the  maliciou?  antagonism  and  personal  hostility  of  a  few, 
has  received  the  approval  of  all  who  have  fairly  and  impartially  considered 
the  whole  question.  This  much  and  in  this  place  it  is  due  to  truth  and 
justice  to  say. 

The  active  promoters  and  friends  of  the  movement  can,  therefore,  well 
afiford  to  treat  with  just  scorn  and  contempt  the  mean  insinuations  so  freely 
indulged  in  as  to  their  motives  and  the  important  work  they  have  accom- 
plished for  the  great  city  of  their  homes,  and  in  the  signal  success  of  which 
work  they  take  an  honorable  and  a  justifiable  pride. 

It  is  a  fact  particularly  deserving  of  notice  right  here  that  among  the 
most  bitter  and  uncompromising  in  their  opposition  to  the  new  parks  were 
some  of  those  ivhose  lands  had  been  taken,  many  whose  lands  had  not 
been  taken,  others  who  insisted  on  having  parks  fronting  on  or  in  the 
immediate  vicinity  of  their  property ;  and  others,  again,  whose  interests 
elsewhere  were  likely,  they  imagined,  to  be  injuriously  affected  by  the 
improvement  of  rival  1  ciliti°s.  Then  there  were,  besides  these,  still  others 
who,  having  foucd  that  the  property  on  the  line  of  tha  parks  had  been 
enhanced  by  its  contiguity  thereto  after  the  passage  of  the  act,  hoped,  by 


00 


CO 


THE  NEW  PARKS.  131 

resorting  to  a  certain  kind  of  legislative  and  official  legerdermain,  to  so 
smuggle  their  lands  outside  the  parks  as  to  secure  the  advantage  of  the 
advanced  value. 

However  conflicting  may  have  been  the  motives  of  the  various  parties  in 
opposition,  one  conclusion  was  inevitable— they  nearly  all  furnished  irre- 
futable testimony  in  support  of  the  argument  that  parks  are  a  good  invest- 
ment and  that  they  afford  a  profitable  return  on  the  outlay. 

ONLY  NATURAL  PARK  LANDS  SELECTED, 

The  question  of  economy  was,  of  course,  an  all  important  one,  and  it 
was,  therefore,  constantly  kept  in  view  in  the  determination  of  the  various 
sites.  It  was  desirable  that  the  tracts  should  be  natural  parks,  requiring 
the  least  expenditure  possible  to  adapt  them  for  public  use,  not  like  the 
Central,  mere  waste  ground,  the  improvement  or  every  acre  of  which  cost 
thrice  the  original  price  of  the  lani.  A  still  further  illustration  of  the 
folly  and  extravagance  which  had  hitherto  prevailed  in  the  purchase  of 
land  for  public  grounds  was  exhibited  in  the  case  of  the  Riversida  and 
Morningside  "parks,"  so  called,  which,  in  addition  to  the  original  price  of 
seven  and  a-quarter  millions  of  dollars  for  120  acres,  will  require  an  expen- 
diture of  three  or  four  millions  more  to  make  them  even  presentable.  At 
the  best  they  can  never  be  more  than  ribbon  parks,  and  nearly  one-half 
their  surface  consists  of  great  ledges  of  JOCk  so  precipitous  in  places  as  to 
be  impassable  without  danger  to  life  and  limb.  When  they  are  "improved  " 
the  whole  120  acres  will  have  cost  as  much  if  not  more  than  the  3,810 
acres  embraced  in  the  area  of  the  new  parks  and  parkways.  The  difference 
between  the  old  and  the  new  pleasure  grounds  is  the  difference  between  an 
unfurnished  and  a  furnished  house,  or  rather  between  a  vacant  and  an 
improved  city  lot. 

The  lands  taken  by  the  act  of  1S84  are  natural  parks,  they  are  furnished 
and  ready  for  use,  and,  keeping  in  view  the  city's  costly  experience  in  the 
three  parks  named,  they  will  be  worth  more  than  thrice  the  amount  that 
will  be  paid  for  them.  As  to  the  future — if  in  thirty-one  years  the  86i 
acres  of  the  Central  have  advanced  from  a  value  of  $8,666,000  in  1856  to 
$2(]O,0O0,O0O  in  1887  what  will  be  the  value  of  the  six  new  parks,  embracing 
3,840  acres,  thirty-one  years  hence  ? 

A  SUGGESTIVE  COMPARISON. 

But  the  contrast  does  not  end  here,  for  it  has  been  a  question,  not  only  of 
money,  but  of  what  is  of  as  much  if  not  more  consequence — it  has  been  also 
a  question  of  time.  The  new  parks  are  now  ready  for  occupancy,  as  much 
so  as  the  Central,  which  was  fifteen  years  in  a  state  of  preparation.  How 
is  it  with  the  two  "  ribbon  parks  ?"  They  were  bought  seventeen  years  ago, 
and  the  city  has  ever  since  been  paying  heavy  interest  on  the  bonds  !  Of 
what  use  have  they  been  to  the  public  for  purposes  of  recreation  ?  Have 
they  been — are  they  now  "things  of  beauty  ?"  parks  ?  playgrounds  ?  And 
yet,  when  a  number  of  public-spirited  citizens  band  together,  give  their 
time  and  their  talents  freely  and  generously  to  the  work  of  providing  a 
grand  system  of  parks  deserving  of  th3  nam3,  ani  which   </i\\  add  to  the 


132  THE  NEW  PARKS. 

attractiveness,  the  health,  the  prosperity  and  renown  of  the  great  metrop- 
olis, they  are  accused  of  mercenary  motives  in  the  prosecution  of  a  work 
which  will  not  only  not  cost  the  city  one  dollar,  but  which  will  place  the 
whole  of  this  magnificent  park  area  in  its  possession  entirely  free  of 
expense,  and  in  all  prohability,  as  in  the  case  of  the  Central  Park,  with  a 
large  profit  to  its  account  on  the  balance  sheet. 

Unfortunately  for  the  city,  the  facts  ani  arguments  prasanted  in  support 
of  the  new  park  movement  failed  to  convince  Mayor  Edson  and  tiis  official 
aids.  They  had  determined  to  defeat  the  bill  which  provided  for  the  appro- 
priation of  a  park  area  of  even  less  extent  than  he,  as  a  mamber  of  the 
Executive  Committee  of  the  New  York  Park  Association,  had  approved, 
indorsed  and  urged  the  Legislature  to  auihoriza  and  direct  the  city  authori- 
ties to  secure.  In  their  opposition  the  Mayor  and  the  heads  of  depart- 
ments were  vigorously  supported  by  several  property-owners  in  Pelbam 
Bay  Park,  who  employed  counsel  and  circulated  petitions  to  which  they 
obtained  among  their  friends  a  large  number  of  signatures.  Happily  their 
opposition  was  counterbalanced  by  the  support  which  the  park  movement 
received  from  other  property-owners,  who,  although  they  were,  as  stated, 
wholly  ignorant  of  the  fact  that  their  lands  had  been  included  in  the  area 
first  indicated,  and  which  embraced  all  that  was  finally  selected  in  the 
location  of  Pelham  Bay  Park,  were  willing  that  their  property  should  be 
devoted  to  public  use  and  ready  to  assist  the  promoters  of  the  good  work. 

STRONG  FRIENDS    OF    THE    MOVEMENT. 

Of  these  Mr.  John  Hunter  deserves  special  mention,  as  also  Mr.  Chas. 
D.  Burrill,  who  acted  as  the  legal  representative  of  several  owners,  and 
who  was  unceasing  in  his  efforts  all  through  the  struggle  with  the  city 
authorities.  And  certainly  never  was  more  effective  duty  performed  by 
lawyer  in  the  interests  of  clients  and  incidentally  in  the  promotion  of  a 
great  public  purpose  than  that  rendered  by  Mr.  Burrill.  From  the  fall  of 
1883  up  to  the  enactment  of  the  law,  in  the  arguments  before  the  Legislative 
Committees,  in  the  contests  before  the  courts,  in  the  defeat  of  the  scheme 
to  repeal  the  act  of  1884;  in  a  word,  in  the  constant  and  persistent  work 
required  all  through  the  years  18Si,  1885,  1886  and  18S7,  Mr.  Burrill  never 
spared  himself,  but  was  always  on  hand  at  the  right  time  and  in  tbe  right 
place.  Fortunate,  indeed,  the  client  whose  case  is  intrusted  to  such  able, 
vigilant,  devoted,  judicious  counsel  as  Mr.  Burrill  proved  himself  through- 
out the  four  years  of  contention  and  strife  duriug  which  he  was  connected 
with  the  park  movement.  In  fact,  his  energy  was  irrepressible  and  his 
vigilance  untiring. 

To  Mr.  Hunter,  especially,  who  secured  the  hearty  co-operation  of 
many  influential  friends  and  advocates  in  promoting  the  passage  of  the 
bill,  great  credit  is  due.  Always  ready,  and  wherever  his  influence 
was  most  required,  this  gentleman  gave  effective  assistance  to  the 
movement,  and  throughout  proved  a  most  potent  factor  in  the  accom- 
plishment of  the  result.  In  justice  to  Mr.  Hunter  it  must  be  said 
that  until  the  publication  of  the  map,  on  which  the  suitable  area 
for  the  location  of  Pelham  Bay  Park  was  marked  out,  he  was  wholly  igno- 


THE  NEW  PARKS.  133 

rant  of  the  fact  that  any  portion  of  his  land  would  be  taken  for  the 
purpose. 

OTHER  FRIENDS. 

Nor  should  the  name  of  a  strong  friend  of  the  parks  be  forgotten  or 
dropped  ofif  this  beadroU— the  late  Hon.  John  Kelly,  who,  taking  a  broad, 
comprehensive,  generous  view  of  the  project,  and  satisfied  that  it  would 
conduce  to  the  interests  of  the  great  city  in  which  he  held  high  oflBcial 
positions,  exercised  his  personal  and  political  influence  to  secure  the  success 
of  the  measure,  exercised  it  too  at  a  time  when  it  was  of  special  importance 
at  Albany.  He  did  not  ask  what  side  was  in  favor  of  the  bill,  or  what  side 
was  to  be  benefited  by  its  passage;  once  convinced  that  it  was  for  the  good 
of  the  city  he  gave  it  his  support.  To  him  this  tribute  is  justly  due  and 
willingly  paid. 

Of  ex-Collector  W.  H.  Robertson  it  is  just  to  say  that,  from  the'moment 
he  read  the  report  and  wrote  his  letter  of  approval,  his  influence  was 
employed  wherever  it  could  be  most  effective.  By  letter,  by  personal  effort, 
and  by  every  honorable  means  he  gave  the  bill  his  hearty  support,  and  to 
Mr.  Robertson  no  less  than  to  Mr.  Kelly  are  their  fellow  citizens  indebted 
in  a  measure  for  its  success. 

To  several  esteemed  friends,  particularly  to  Mr.  John  H.  Farrell,  editor 
of  the  Albany  Press  and  Knickerbocker;  Hon.  John  W.  Jacobus,  Hon. 
Wm.  Purcell,  of  Rochester;  Hon.  Hiram  Barney,  Thos.  B.  Connery,  Gen. 
James  R.  O'Beirne,  Hon.  Joseph  B.  Carr,  and  Hon.  Thomas  B.  Asten,  the 
author  makes  his  sincere  acknowledgments  for  timely  and  cordial  support. 
But  the  list  of  workers  in  the  cause  would  be  still  incomplete  without  the 
name  of  Mr.  D.  H.  Watson,  who  was  ever  ready  to  give  his  welcome 
co-operation  whenever  it  was  most  required. 

THE  WORK  PERFORMED. 

Republicans,  or  Democrats,  it  mattered  not— on  this  question  there  were 
no  party  lines,  and,  with  very  few  exceptions,  they  were  found  shoulder  to 
shoulder  working  for  the  enactment  of  the  law. 

Probably  there  never  was  a  measure  introduced  into  a  Legislature  which 
depended  so  completely  on  its  merits,  and  with  which  political  considera- 
tions had  so  little  to  do.  It  was,  from  the  beginning,  steady,  unremitting, 
persistent,  untiring  work,  backed  by  a  determination  to  succeed,  and,  of 
course,  Work  &  Will  won  the  victory.     It  is  a  firm  that  seldom  fails. 

During  the  six  years  that  have  elapsed  since  the  inception  of  the  move- 
ment the  author  gave  to  it  his  best  efforts,  with  an  unfaltering  faith  in  its 
ultimate  s>iccess.  In  these  six  years  of  steaiy,  continuous  work  many 
thousand  letters  were  written,  several  pamphlets  and  circulars  prepared 
and  distributed,  independent  of  tha  dry  monotonous  details  of  a  secretary's 
duties.  All  this,  constituting  a  vast  mass  of  work,  tvas  performed  without 
a  dollar  of  expense  to  the  city,  or  to  any  one  except  the  worker.  To  this 
was  added  throughout  those  years  of  contest  and  controversy  unceasing 
personal  efforts  among  friends  and  all  who  were  willing  to  promote  the 
success  of  the  movement.      For  the  writer  it  was  a  labor  of  love,  a  self 


134  THE  ISEW  PARKS. 

imposed  task,  and  his  services  money  could  neither  purchase  nor  com- 
pensate. 

The  information  collected  from  official  and  other  sources  were  compiled 
in  popular  forms  and  scattered  broadcast  through  the  public  press  and 
in  various  publications.  In  fact,  tha  literature  of  the  New  Parks  had 
grown  into  the  proportions  of  a  small  library,  and  including  the  legal 
arguments  would  fill  twenty  ordinary-sizsd  volumes.  In  the  msaatiine 
correspondence  was  kept  up  with  unflagging  energy.  Wherever  a  friend 
could  be  secured,  an  enemy  converted,  or  an  earnest;  worker  interested,  wy 
pains  were  spai'ed  either  by  letter  or  personal  effort,  to  enlist  them 
in  the  cause.  They  were  furnished  with  battsries  of  argum?nt3,  and 
arsenals  of  facts.  Whenever  the  influence  of  a  public  man  who 
believed  in  it  could  be  obtained  his  co-oparation  was  solicited.  Iq  this 
way  men  representing  large  interests  in  real  estate,  the  Astrirs,  the  Bel- 
monts,  the  Tiffianys,  the  Claflins,  etc.,  appreciating  the  effe3t  of  the  New 
Parks  in  the  enhancement  of  values  and  profiting  by  the  experience  in 
the  case  of  the  Central,  gave  their  approval  to  the  movement  and  united 
in  an  earnest  appeal  to  the  Mayor,  the  Legislature  and  the  Governor  in 
favor  of  the  bill. 

A  HOST   OF  ALLIES. 

The  signers  of  the  several  petitions  belonged  to  all  classes — bankers, 
merchants,  tradesmen,  laborers,  physicians,  artists,  numbering  over  seven 
thousand.  The  artists,  as  stated  on  another  page,  sent  a  petition  of  their 
own  to  the  Governor,  and  the  physicians  followed  their  example,  while  the 
General  and  Colonels  of  the  First  Division  of  the  National  Guard  united  in 
a  special  appeal.  This  last  was  forwarded  the  day  before  the  Governor 
signed  the  bill,  and  as  it  was  a  matter  of  special  importance  the  writer 
himself  procured  the  signatures  and  placed  the  valuable  document  in  the 
General  Postofflce  at  twelve  o'clock  ac  night  in  order  to  secure  its  delivery 
at  the  Executive  Chamber  the  following  morning,  being  the  last  of  the 
thirty  days  allowed  by  law  for  signing  bills. 

As  it  was  a  project  of  particular  interest  to  the  lines  of  railroads  which 
ran  near  or  through  the  parks,  and  as  the  business  of  the  roads  would  be 
immensely  augmented  by  the  transportation  to  and  from  these  great 
pleasure  grounds  of  millions  of  visitors  hereafter,  active  support  was 
obtained  from  this  quarter,  while  men  of  broad  minds  and  benevolent 
sympathies,  regarding  it  as  a  beneficent  measure  in  a  sanitary  point  of  view 
and  productive  of  great  good,  not  only  fiaancially  but  physically,  mentally 
and  morally,  indorsed  it  warmly,  and  in  many  instances  volunteered  their 
assistance  in  the  circulation  of  documents  among  their  friends  and 
acquaintances.  Among  these  friends  was  the  brilliant  and  popular 
historian  Charles  Edward  Lester,  who  manifested  a  deep  interest  in  the 
success  of  the  measure  throughout,  and  who  on  the  thirtieth  of  the 
momentous  days  addressed  an  earnest  letter  to  the  Governor,  imploring 
him  "  in  the  name  of  all  my  fellow  citizens  now  living  and  of  the  innumer- 
able millions  yet  to  be,  and  the  deathless  fame  which  is  alone  within  your 
grasp,  not  to  let  to  day's  sun  set  over  the  grave  of  the  park  bill." 


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THE  NEW  PARKS.  137 

To  tho  vast  multitude  of  letters  Mr.  Marsh  added  one  from  hij  own  p?n, 
a  last  and  urgent  appeal,  in  which  he  said,  "  We  are  none  of  us,  my  dear 
Governor,  insensible  to  what  our  record  will  be  in  the  future,"  and  addad 
that  it  seemed  a  most  felicitous  circumstance  in  the  Governor's  career  that 
just  as  it  was  broadening  into  national  importance  the  opportunity  was 
'  ■  presented  him  to  do  an  act  so  graceful  and  useful  and  popular,  which 
will  render  such  great  benefit  now  and  in  the  future  to  untold  multitudes 
of  people,  enrich  and  renown  our  city,  institute  an  element  of  culture, 
taste,  wealth,  health  and  repute,  to  grow  ever,  hereafter,  in  the  apprecia- 
tion and  praise  of  the  people,  and  to  place  us  in  rank  in  this  respect  with 
the  great  centres  of  civilization  in  the  worll." 

LEGISLATIVE  CHAMPIONS  AND  ADVJCATES. 

Foremost  among  the  friends  of  the  measure  in  the  Assembly  was  General 
Husted,  who  had  made  himself  thoroughly  familiar  with  the  subject  and  who 
stood  by  it  from  the  day  on  which  the  bill  was  introduced  to  the  close  on 
the  eventful  6th  of  May,  when  it  was  carried  by  a  vote  of  seventy-four  to 
twenty-one,  after  a  protracted  debate  and  a  futile  attempt  of  its  opponents 
in  New  York  to  defeat  it  by  a  demand  for  a  second  hearing,  which  required 
its  return  to  the  committee  and  the  delay  of  a  week.  His  admirable  tact 
and  parliamentary  experience  defeated  the  peculiar  strategy  of  the  oppo- 
sition at  every  point,  for  they  had  hoped  by  frequent  postponements  to 
defer  action  till  the  close  of  the  session,  when  they  confidently  expected  to 
kill  the  bill  outright  by  an  adverse  vote,  or  to  prevent  its  being  reached 
before  the  hour  of  adjoJirnment.  In  this  they  were  signally  vanquished  by 
the  able  management  and  generalship  of  this  sterling  friend  and  champion 
of  the  measure. 

The  hearing  was  granted,  and  although  Hon.  Theodore  Roosevelt,  a 
pronounced  and  active  antagonist,  was  chairman  of  the  Committee  on  Cities, 
that  committee  voted  unanimously  to  report  the  bill  before  it  adjourned. 
When  it  was  brought  before  the  Assembly  the  second  time  it  was  warmly 
supported  by  Major  James  Haggerty,  one  of  the  staunchsst  friends  of  the 
parks  even  before  he  went  to  the  Legislature,  and  whose  opportune  presence 
at  one  of  the  committee  meetings  and  personal  efforts  while  the  bill  was 
pending  materially  aided  the  good  work.  Then  there  were  also  Hon.  L.  L. 
Van  Allen,  of  New  York;  Norton  P.  Otis,  of  Yonkers;  George  Z.  Erwin, 
of  St.  Lawrence;  James  Oliver,  of  New  York;  Thomas  V.  Welch,  of 
Niagara;  Gen.  Curtis,  of  St.  Lawrence;  Isaac  R.  Dayton,  of  New  York; 
Frederick  B.  House,  of  New  York;  Walter  Howe,  of  New  York;  James 
Kent,  of  Duchess;  Do  WiDt  C.  Littlejohn,  of  Oswego;  Hon.  H.  Olin,  of 
Broome ;  Frank  Rice,  of  Ontario ;  W.  E.  Smith,  of  Clinton.  Of  these  mem- 
bers Mr.  Van  Allen  w  as  the  steady,  consistent  supporter  of  the  bill,  and 
his  cogent  arguments  and  his  thorough  knowledge  of  the  whole  subject 
■was  turned  to  the  best  account,  not  only  in  the  debates  iu  committee  and 
in  the  Assembly,  but  in  conversation  with  his  fellow  members. 

Mr.  Howe,  who  had  taken  a  &pjcial  interest  in  its  success,  was  one  of  the 
most  earnest  and  judicious  friends,  whiie  Messrs.  Otis,  Littlejohn,  Erwin, 
Oliver,  House,  Welch  and  Curtis  were  always  ready  when  occasion  offered, 


138  THE  NEW  PARKS. 

not  only  to  forward  its  progress  throush  the  committee,  buS  to  give  it  prompt 
consideration  when  it  came  before  the  Assembly.  These  gentlemen  were 
among  its  ablest  advocates,  and  the  respect  in  which  their  views  were  held 
among  their  fellow  members,  and  their  conceded  personal  integrity,  secured 
for  the  measure  the  fullest  and  fairest  consideration. 

When  on  the  6th  of  May  the  till  cam3  up  in  the  AssemMy  on  its  final 
passage,  the  vote,  after  a  warm  debate,  stood  74  to  21,  as  follows  : 

AN  OVERWHELMING  MAJORITY. 

Yeas—li.  R.  Bailey,  C.  K.  Baker,  C.  F.  Barager,  H.  Becker,  L.  L.  Boyce, 
N.  C.  Boynton,  C.  W.  Brown,  J.  H.  Brown,  M.  E.  Butler,  J.  J.  Clarke,  G. 
Clinton,  A.  B.  Craig,  N.  M.  Curtis,  I.  Dayton,  G.  A.  Dean,  J.  M.  Dibble, 
J.  H.  Dimmick,  George  Erwin,  J.  W.  Felter,  P.  Garbutt,  J.  Geddes,  James 
Haggerty,  C.  S.  Hall,  H.  C.  Harpending,  G.  D.  Hasbrouck,  E.  F.  Haskell, 
S.  S.  Hawkins,  H.  Heath,  P.  Hendricks,  D.  P.  Horton,  P.  B.  House,  W. 
Howe,  W.  Howland,  W.  S.  Hubbell,  I.  L.  Hunt,  J.  W.  Husted,  T.  W. 
Jackson,  S.  W.  Johnson,  G.  W.  Jones,  P.  J.  Kelly,  J.  Kent,  Jr.,  A.  J. 
Kneeland,  F.  W.  Kruse,  Da  Witt  C.  Littlejohn,  L.  R  Locke,  S.  D.  Locke, 
J.  T.  McDonald,  D.  P.  Mullaney,  E.  A.  Nash,  T.  Noxon,  J.  C.  Odell,  J. 
Oliver,  W.  T.  O'Neil,  E.  B.  Oiborne,  N.  P.  Otis,  T.  J.  Owen,  S.  S.  Peirson, 
C.  R.  Pratt,  O.  F.  Price,  W.  B.  Willoughby,  F.  Rice,  E.  J.  Seeber,  C.  Shoe- 
maker, W.  E.  Smith,  G.  M.  Sweet,  T.  H.  Tremper,  L.  L.  Van  Allen,  J.  S. 
Van  Duzer,  J.  W.  Veeder,  M.  Walrath,  Jr.,  G.  E.  Whiteman,  D.  J.  Wilcox, 
J.  Zimmerman,  and  the  Speaker,  Titus  Sheard. 

Nays— J.  Ackroyd,  C.  A.  Binder,  P.  Burns,  M.  J.  Coffey,  E.  A.  Darragh, 
J.  E.  Donnelly,  J.  A.  Driess,  P.  H.  Duflfy,  M.  C.  Earl,  T.  F.  Parrell,  J. 
Forsyth,  Jr.,  G.  R.  Johnson,  D.  S.  Kittle,  G.  H.  Lindsay,  B.  S.  McCabe, 
R.  Nagle,  P.  H.  Roche,  T.  Roosevelt,  S.  D.  Rosenthal,  F.  Sipp.  D.  M.  Van 
Cott. 

THE  BILL  BECOMES  A  LAW. 

In  due  time  the  bill  was  engrossed  and  sent  to  the  Governor,  who  had 
thirty  days  within  which  to  consider  its  merits  and  demerits,  to  hear  argu- 
ments pro  and  con,  and  its  fate  was  suspended  in  the  balance  during  this  long 
and  trying  ordeal.  Arguments  and  petitions  were  showered  upon  him  by 
both  sides.  He  had  only  to  intimate  his  desire  for  more  light  on  the  subject 
and  it  was  given  to  him.  Messrs.  Marsh,  Develin,  Burrill  and  the  author 
called  upon  him  on  behalf  of  the  parks,  and  Mayor  Edson,  the  Corporation 
Counsel  and  others  against  them.  He  was  in  doubt  on  the  question  of  home 
rule  as  involved  in  the  controversy,  but  Mr.  Develin,  who  appeared  at  an 
opportune  moment,  satisfied  his  scruples  on  that  point,  and  on  the  morning 
of  the  thirtieth  day  he  received,  as  stated,  a  formidable  petition,  through 
the  author,  from  the  cflicers  of  the  First  Diviiion,  in  addition  to  the  seven 
or  eight  thousand  names  already  forwarded,  and  a  great  portfolia  of  letters, 
all  of  which  proved  irresistible,  andsD,  aftdr  a  thorough  and  minute  con- 
sideration of  all  the  questions  involved,  Mr.  Cleveland  put  his  name  to  the 
bill  late  in  the  evening  of  June  14th,  when  it  became  a  law  of  the  State. 

It  was  reasonable  to  suppose  that  the  war  against  the  park  movement 
was  at  an  end  when  the  Governor  signed  the  bill.     Not  so,  however.     Its 


THE  NEW  PARKS.  139 

enemies  were  resolved  to  renew  the  flght,  and  they  next  directed  their 
attacks  upon  the  law  itself.  They  dissected  its  various  clauses,  and  they 
discovered,  to  their  own  satisfaction  at  least,  that  it  was  not  only  defective 
in  its  most  essential  provisions,  but  that  it  was  unconstitutional,  and  so  the 
objections  were  strung  out  and  stretched  till  they  filled  '^age  after  page  of 
briefs  that  sadly  belied  their  title. 

The  act  directed  the  Mayor,  Aldermen  and  Commonalty  of  the  city  of 
New  York,  by  and  through  the  Department  of  Public  Parks,  to  apply  to 
the  next  General  Term  of  thb  Supreme  Court  for  the  appointment  of  Com 
missioners  of  Estimate,  and  on  the  14th  of  July  Mr.  Davelin  appeared 
before  the  Park  Board  and  secured  the  adoption  of  the  necessary  resolution 
requesting  the  CorpDration  Counsel  "  to  initiate  and  carry  to  conclusion 
the  proceedings  necessary  and  proper  to  acquire  title,  pursuant  to  Chapter 
523  of  the  laws  of  this  State  for  the  year  1884,  of  certain  lands  and  premises 
ia  the  Twenty  third  and  Twenty-fourth  Wards  of  the  city  of  New  York 
and  the  county  of  Westchester  laid  out  and  devoted  by  said  chapter  to  and 
for  the  purpose  of  public  parks." 

RENEWAL  OF  THE    CONTEST. 

The  fipplication  was  accordingly  made  in  due  form,  and  at  this  point  the 
fijibt  ^as  c.pened  again  with  renewed  vigor.  The  counsel  enlisted  on  the 
side  ( f  the  parks  were  Messrs.  John  E.  Develin,  C.  D.  Burrill,  John  H. 
Miller  and  John  L.  Wells ;  and  against,  C.  H.  Roosevelt,  J.  C.  Shaw  and  L. 
M.  Leavy.  Mr.  Marsh  did  not  appear,  but  it  is  only  just  to  say  that  he 
furnished  a  large  part  of  the  most  potent  arguments.  On  the  Ist  of  Decem- 
ber, 1884,  the  Court  announced  its  decision,  which  was  delivered  by  Judge 
Daniels,  and  it  was  so  direct  and  conclusive  that  it  lift  no  reasonable  grouid 
on  which  to  rest  an  appeal.  But  legal  ingenuity  was  never  at  fault  in  such 
an  emergency,  and  where  there  was,  even  to  the  sharpest  perception,  no 
ground,  the  well-known  professional  acuteness  succeeded  in  discovering  a 
territory  over  which  to  spread  itself,  compared  with  which  the  parks  were 
a  mere  speck.  No  ground  !  Why  there  was  a  whole  cantinent,  and  with 
such  a  broad  fulcrum  a  legal  lever  was  applied  that  moved  the  whole  case  a 
distance  of  150  miles  and  landed  it  right  into  the  Court  of  Appeals.  Here 
Mr.  Simon  Sterne  stood  against  and  Mr.  John  B.  Dillon  for  the  act.  The 
Court,  however,  saw  no  reason  why  the  decision  of  the  General  Term 
should  be  reversed,  and  it  said  so  in  its  decision  on  the  6th  of  October,  1835, 
which  was  one  of  the  tersest,  ablest  and  most  admirable  pieces  of  legal  com- 
position that  has  ever  been  hauded  down  by  that  tribunal.  In  fact  the 
decisions  of  both  Judge  Daniels  of  the  Supreme  Court  and  Judge  Finch  of 
the  Appeals  were  masterpieces  of  legal  literature,  and  the  broad  treatment 
of  the  subject  imparts  to  tham  an  interest  even  for  laymen,  which  is  very 
rarely  found  in  such  productions. 

DECISI"'N  OF  THE   COURT  OF  APPEALS. 

Reference  has  already  been  made  at  somj  length  to  the  decision  of  Judge 
Daniels,  but  as  that  delivered  by  Jud^e  Pinch  should  have  ended  the  con- 
test it    is  entitl-^d  to  mjro    thm  a  pisuu?  notice.      It  covered  all  the 


140  THE  ISEW  PARKS. 

points  in  the  contr  wersy  and  declared,  as  stated  befors,  that  "  the  statute 
itself  condemn^  and  appropriates  for  the  public  use  the  precise  lands 
selected,  by  meies  and  bounds,  so  that  every  owner  affected  had  means  of 
knowing  that  his  land  was  taken."  It  furthermore  declared  that 
'"while  it  is  not  necessary  in  advance  of  the  taking  to  pay  ty  the  land- 
otvner  his  comjjeyisation,  it  is  necessary  that  the  act  which  invades  his 
oivnership  shall  provide  for  a  certain  and  definite  and  adequate  source 
and  manner  of  payment."  As  to  the  objection  that  "the  purchase  of  land 
for  public  parks  outside  of  the  corporate  boundaries  is  not  a  '  city  purpose' 
and  so  the  creation  of  a  debt  for  such  purpose  is  forbidden  by  the  constitu- 
tion," the  Court  cited  several  cases  in  which  public  works  had  been  carried 
on  outside  the  limits  of  the  respective  cities  for  whose  use  and  benefit  they 
were  not  only  designed  but  for  which  they  were  absolutely  essential  and 
necessary.  The  case  of  tha  Brooklyn  Park  was  referred  to  as  bearing 
particularly  on  that  before  the  Court.  In  the  act  of  1884  the  Commission, 
said  Judge  Finch— 

"  was  dirpc^ed  to  recommend  parks  within  the  city  and  the  adjacent  dis- 
trict of  Westchester  County  They  were  not  left  to  stray  at  large.  Tueir 
authority  kept  them  near  enough  to  the  city  to  subserve,  in  the  judgment 
of  the  Legislature,  tho  city's  use  and  convenience.  They  were  also  directed 
to  act,  having  in  view  •  the  present  condition  and  future  growth  and  wants 
of  the  city.'  That  an  ordinary  city  may  be,  and  often  should  be,  planned 
and  executed  with  reference  as  well  to  future  as  present  needs,  cannot  be 
denied.  The  city  may  lay  out  a  wide  sireet  when  a  narrower  one  would 
answer  present  wants,  and  extend  it  beyond  habitations  and  immediate 
needs.  The  city  may  erect  a  public  building,  having  in  view  future  neces- 
sities, and  exceeding  the  demands  of  present  use.  That  is  often  true 
economy  and  wise  municipal  administration.  The  adjoining  district  of 
Westchester  County,  in  which  a  portion  of  the  park  was  located,  is  a  tri- 
angle shut  in  between  the  city  and  the  river  on  the  east  and  west  and  an 
extension  to  the  river  of  the  city's  north  line.  That  the  current  of  city 
population  will  soon  overflow  this  triangle,  and  the  corporate  boundaries 
embrace  it,  the  Commission  judged,  and  the  Legislature  determined— 
thoughtfully,  with  deliberation,  after  careful  study  and  investigation  upon 
facts  not  before  us,  and  with  the  opportunity  and  the  aid  of  personal  exam- 
ination. It  would  require  a  very  clear  and  very  strong  case  to  justity  a 
Com*t  in  pronouncing  such  a  conclusion  to  be  but  a  fraudulent  cover  for 
some  ulterior  design  foreign  to  the  city's  welfare.  Such  is  not  the  case 
before  us.  We  must  assume  what  we  can  see  is  at  least  p  )ssible  and  per- 
haps probable,  that  the  lands  over  the  border  are  so  near,  so  convenient  of 
access,  so  likely  to  be  overtaken  and  surrounded  by  the  city's  growth,  so 
desirable  for  the  health  and  recreation  of  the  citizens,  and  so  cheaply  to  be 
got  in  comparison  with  the  consequence  of  delay,  as  to  indicate  a  primary 
and  predominant  city  purpose  in  a  matter  itself  within  the  ordinary  range 
of  municipal  action. " 

The  decision  having  minutely  reviewed  all  the  arguments  presented  and 
carefully  considered  every  point  submitted  by  the  appellants,  sustained  the 
act  and  its  interpretation  by  the  Supreme  Court.  It  was  in  fact  conclusive 
on  all  the  vital  questions  raised;  so  conclusive  that  opposition  should  have 
ceased  on  its  publication,  and  opposition  doubtless  would  have  ceased  but 
for  the  interests  which  were  subserved  by  its  continuance  anl  which  were 
in  direct  antagonism  with  those  of  the  city. 

THE  COMMISSION  OP  APPRAISAL. 

The  Supreme  Court  in  rendering  its  decision  on  the  constitutionality  of 


THE  NEW  PARKS.  143 

the  act  announced  the  appointment  of  Messrs.  Luther  R.  Marsh,  Georgo 
W.  Quintard  and  J.  Seaver  Page  a^  Commissioners  of  Estimate  and 
Appraisement.  Having  qualified  by  taking  the  usual  oath,  the  Commis- 
siun  was  organized  by  the  election  of  Mr.  Marsh  as  chairman,  and  th ) 
appointment  of  Gen.  J.  C.  Lane  and  Mr.  R.  L.  Waters  as  engineers  for  the 
survey  of  the  parks  and  parkways  taken  by  the  act. 

Reference  has  already  been  made  to  General  Lane's  qualifications.  Of 
Mr.  Waters,  it  is  sufficient  to  say  that  he  has  been  engaged  on  some  of  the 
most  important  survey  work  for  the  city,  that  he  has  had  a  long  experience 
in  his  profession,  and  that  he  is  deservedly  regarded  as  one  of  the  most 
skillful  and  competent  civil  engineers  in  the  metropolis.  Mr.  Arthur  Berry 
was  appointed  clerk  to  the  Commission,  and  Mr.  Franklin  Bartlett  appeared 
as  the  representative  of  the  Corporation  Counsel  on  behalf  of  the  city. 

The  first  meeting  of  the  Commission  was  held  on  the  3Qth  of  December, 
and  thus,  by  the  fruitless  eif orts  to  defeat  the  purposes  of  the  act,  many 
precious  months  were  lost  that  could  have  been  devoted  to  the  work  of 
appraisement.  But  the  vexatious  delay  was  made  still  more  vexatious  and 
protracted  by  the  new  ground  of  attack  which  had  been  discovered,  and 
which,  though  still  more  untenable  than  the  first,  caused  the  loss  of  over  a 
year  in  the  business  before  the  Commission. 

So  long  as  the  constitutionality  of  the  act  and  the  very  existence  of  the 
Commission  itself  was  in  doubt  the  property-owners  naturally  hesitated  about 
incurring  the  expense  of  employing  lawyers  to  represent  them  before  the 
Commission  and  of  providing  the  necessary  surveys  of  their  land.  But  for 
these  causes  of  delay  a  year  and  a-half  coul  i  have  been  saved,  an  expense  of 
over  a  hundred  thousand  dollars  avoided,  and  large  tar  incomes  derived 
by  the  city  from  the  enhanced  values  of  the  property  surrounding  the  new 
parks;  for  so  long  as  litigation  was  kept  up  the  public  mind  was  in  doubt 
and  uncertainty  as  to  the  constitutionality  of  the  act  and  the  issue  of  the 
Sinking  Fund  case.  Cinder  such  circumstances  all  tha  benefits  which 
would  otherwise  result  frDm  the  unobstructed  disposal  of  the  work  of  the 
Commission  have  been  lost,  and  the  paople  have  baen  deprived  of  the  use 
of  the  parks  a  year  and  a-half  longer  than  was  necessary. 

This  is  what  the  opposition  has  accomplished,  besides  the  damage  other- 
wise inflicted  on  the  city's  interest  by  the  preposterous  theories  and  legal 
sophistries  of  the  Sinking  Fund  controversy.  Every  petty  device  that 
legal  ingenuity  could  suggest  was  employed  to  retard  the  progress  of  the 
work  at  the  beginning.  The  Commission  had  hardly  been  organized  before 
an  attempt  was  made  through  the  Supreme  Court,  after  its  decision  on  the 
constitutionality  of  the  act,  to  direct  and  control  the  manner  in  which  it 
should  perform  the  duty  with  which  it  was  intrusted.  The  opposition  insisted 
that  the  small  parks  sh  uld  be  the  first  appraised,  and  as  the  Commission, 
with  a  proper  sense  of  self  respect  and  a  thorough  knowledge  of  its  own 
powers,  refused  to  submit  to  such  dictation,  the  matter  was  carried  into 
Court,  and  the  intermeddlers,  after  a  brief  c:^ntest,  defeated. 

A  FINANCIAL  STUMBLING  BLOCK. 

The  year  1885  has  been  made  memorable  in  the  history  of  the  New  Parks 


144  THE  ISEW  PARKS. 

movement  by  the  persistent  effort  on  the  part  of  Mayor  Grrace  to  repeal  the 
act  of  1S84.  His  predecessor,  after  the  passage  of  the  Constitutional  Amend- 
ment limiting  the  right  of  New  York  and  other  cities  to  issue  bonds  in 
excess  of  10  per  cent,  of  the  assessed  value  of  taxable  real  estate,  contended 
that  the  debt  of  the  city  had  passed  that  limit. 

At  that  time  the  actual  municipal  indebtedness  amounted  to  $93,047,403, 
and  the  assessed  value  of  city  real  estate  to  ^1,175,057,885,  leaving  a  margia 
of  $35,458,385,  to  the  amount  of  ^hich  bonds  might  be  issued  for  public 
improvements. 

As  there  were  in  the  Sinking  Fund  bonds  to  the  value  of  $34,823,735,  which 
had  been  purchased  by  the  revenues  of  that  fund,  and  were,  therefore,  owned 
by  the  city,  this  amount  by  a  strange  perversion  of  language,  or  obliquity 
of  reasoning,  was  construed  as  a  portion  of  the  city  debt,  so  that  if  the 
total  bonds  thus  held  reached  a  hundred  millions  the  city  would  be  indebted 
to  that  amount,  aud  thus  it  followed  that  the  more  the  city  paid  the  more 
it  owed,  as  all  these  bonds  were  to  be  regarded  as  so  much  of  the  debt  until 
they  had  matured. 

This  view  of  the  matter  was  held  by  ^fayors  Edson  and  Grace,  the 
Corporation  Counsel  and  by  the  Special  and  General  Terms  of  the  Court 
of  Common  Pleas. 

Bo  long  as  this  new  stumbling  block  lay  in  the  way  of  the  Commissioners 
of  Appraisal  their  proceedings  were  seriously  embarrassed  and  delayed, 
and  it  was  not  until  this  last  obstruction  was  swept  away  by  the  deci  ion 
of  the  Court  of  Appeals  on  the  20th  of  April,  1SS6,  that  they  were  left  free 
to  perform  their  work  without  further  interruption  or  delay. 

The  decision  sustained  the  view  presented  in  a  pamphlet  issued  by 
Mr.  Marsh  aud  the  author,  the  Court  holding  that  the  debt  of  the  city  was 
"$93,090,000,  or  so  much  as  is  equal  to  its  bonds,  or  stock,  not  including  that 
held  in  the  Sinking  Fund.^^  The  argument  was  made  by  Messrs.  J.  E. 
DeveUn  and  C.  E.  Miller  for  defendants,  and  Simon  Sterne,  counsel  for  the 
Bank  for  Savings,  by  which  the  action  was  brought  to  prevent  the  issue  of 
bonds  to  the  amount  of  $3,000, OOJ  for  dock  improvements.  Although  their 
names  did  not  appear  Mr.  Marsh  an  J  Mr.  Burrill  here  rendered  important 
service  in  aiding  the  preparation  of  briefs. 

HOSTILE  ATTITUDE  OF  EX-MAYOR  GRACE. 

While  the  legal  warfare  was  being  waged  on  the  Sinking  Fund  question 
the  opposition  rallied  in  force  for  a  flarce  and  prolonged  struggle  under 
Mayor  Grace,  whose  hostility  was  unmistaueauly  foreshadowed  iu  his 
annual  message  to  the  Board  of  Aldermen.  In  that  document  he  stated 
that  the  estimated  cost  of  the  parks  *'  as  projected  will  be  from  $  15,0O0,0JO  to 
$20,000,0C0."  As  the  Commission  that  located  the  sites  and  that  had  given 
the  matter  special  attention  placed  the  amount  at  about  $8,000,000,  Mr. 
Grace's  estimate,  if  not  made  with  the  premeditated  design  to  mislead,  had 
that  effect  on  a  large  number  who  were  ignorant  of  the  facts.  He  had 
been  informed  as  to  the  fi°:ures  of  the  Commission  especially,  for  the 
writer  had  furnished  the  information  on  the  personal  request  of  his  secre- 
tary many  days  before  the  message  was  delivered. 


THE  NEW  PARKS.  14> 

The  excessive  estimat'i  and  the  assertion  by  which  it  was  accompanied, 
that  "  the  recent  Constitutional  amendment  would  prevent  the  carrying  out 
of  the  plan  for  the  present,"  dispelled  whatever  doubts  the  friends  of  the 
parks  might  have  had  with  regxrd  to  his  attitude.  His  view  of  the  Sinking 
Fund  question  applied  to  ordinary  financial  or  mercantile  transactions 
would  be  simply  ludici-ous.  As  stated,  according  to  this  theory,  the  bonds 
purchased,  paid  for  and  owned  by  the  city,  were  still  a  city  debt  and  con- 
tinued a  city  debt  till  the  day  on  which  they  matured.  Thus,  if  a  merchant 
bought  up  his  notes  several  weeks  before  they  were  due  he  would  still  be 
indebted  for  the  various  amounts  until  the  specified  dates  t 

This  financial  reductio  ad  ccbsurdum  was  kept  up  to  the  suspension  of 
much  needed  public  works  till  it  was  finally  exploded  by  the  decision  of  the 
Court  of  Appeals.  In  connection  with  the  exaggerated  estimates  of  the 
cost  of  the  parks  it  served  the  purpose,  however,  of  misleading  many  in 
regard  to  the  special  point  of  attack,  the  act  of  1881,  for  the  repeal  of  which, 
under  cover  of  these  misstatements,  a  movement  was  organized.  When, 
therefore,  the  writer  was  requested  to  call  upjn  the  Mayor,  about  seven 
weeks  after  his  inauguration,  he  found  that  the  parks  were  the  particular 
purpose  of  the  conference. 

THE   SECOND  MAYORALTY  WAR  AGAINST  THE   PARKS. 

"  As  you  are  at  the  bottom  of  this  trouble  about  the  parks,"  said  he,  "  I 
want  to  see  if  we  can't  make  some  compromise." 

"  With  pleasure,  Mr.  Mayor,"  was  the  reply.  "  The  friends  of  the  parks 
are  most  willing.  But  why  not  assist  instead  of  opposing  this  great  work? 
Why  not  do  as  the  Mayor  of  London  has  done?  Although  the  Londoners 
had  15.000  acres  when  we  began  this  movement  he  has  been  helping  them 
to  secure  7,000  acres  more." 

The  conversation,  of  which  it  is  not  necessary  to  enter  into  the  details, 
was  somewhat  protracted  and  embraced  not  only  the  new  parks,  but  the 
Sinking  Fund  question,  the  financial  condition  of  the  city,  the  Constitutional 
Amendment  and  its  effect  on  the  power  of  the  city  to  issue  bonds  for  public 
improvements,  the  justice  of  assessing  adjoining  propsrty  for  parks,  Mr. 
Grace's  plan  of  taking  and  paying  for  parks,  and  a  comparison  of  New 
York  with  other  great  cities  in  the  matter  of  park  area.  He  was  very 
emphatic  in  the  expression  of  his  determination  to  substitute  a  bill  of  his 
own  for  the  Act  of  1884,  and  strongly  denounced  the  new  parks  movement. 

"  This  whole  thing,"  said  he,  "  is  a  swindle." 

"A  swindlp?" 

"Yes,  a  swindle." 

"  Do  you  desire,  Mr.  Mayor,  to  have  it  go  forth  that  you  called  this 
movement  a  swindle,  sustained  as  it  has  been  and  is  by  the  press  and  by  a 
large  number  of  our  most  respected  citizens?" 

"  Well,  no;  I  don't  mean  that  exactly,"  was  the  reply;  "  but  it  is  pre- 
mature; and,  besides,  the  city  cannot  issue  bonds  under  the  Constitutional 
Amenament." 

The  conversation,  as  stated,  was  somewhat  protracted,  and  at  its  close 


146  THE  NEW  PARKS. 

the  Mayor  arinounced  his  intention  to  go  to  Albany  and  secure  the  passage 
of  a  bill  which  would  embody  his  plan. 

The  following  day,  February  27,  in  pursuance  of  a  previous  understand- 
ing, the  author  sent  a  letter  ti  Mr.  G-rac3,  reviewing  at  length  the  Sinking 
Fund  question,  showing  the  city's  actual  indebtedness,  its  paucity  in  park 
area  compared  with  other  cities,  the  rapid  increase  of  population  and  the 
financial  benefits  resulting  from  the  creation  of  parks.  "  In  view  of  such 
testimony,"  said  the  letter,  "  it  is  to  be  hoped  that  ycu  will  be  able  hereafter 
to  say  that  you  did  not  retard,  but  participated  in  accomplishing  this  great 
result.  I  can  not  help  thinking  that  an  oppoiilion  to  this  measure  would 
be  a  serious  mistake  of  your  administration.  *  *  *  *  Oae  word  more 
in  conclusion.  I  have  said  that  these  lands  are  natural  parks,  and  the 
moment  they  are  paid  for  by  the  city  the  people  can  enter  into  possession. 
In  the  case  of  Central  Pari-,  which  is  almost  wholly  artificial,  fifteen  years 
elapsed  before  it  was  fit  for  public  use;  and  its  preparation  and  improve- 
ment cost  four  times  the  amount  paid  for  the  land— more  than  the  entire 
cost  of  the  New  Park  system.  The  Riverside  and  Morningside  parks,  which 
you  alluded  to  in  our  conversation  yesterday,  could  not  be  of  any  financial 
benefit  to  the  city,  for  they  were  bought  at  the  highest  figure — $6J,0u0  an 
acre— and  their  total  area  of  120  acres  cost  the  city  the  enormous  sum  of 
seven  millions  and  a  quarter.  And  even  now  they  are  not  parks,  but  mere 
ledges  of  rock,  ribbons  from  100  to  300  feet  wide,  which  will  cost  probably 
several  millions  more  before  they  are  fio  for  use.  That  was  indeed  a  gigan- 
tic swindle,  costing  nearly  as  much  for  the  120  acres  of  rock  as  w~uld  pay 
for  our  4,000  acres  of  natural  and  beautiful  park  lands." 

A  SCHEME   TO   NULLIFY    THE   ACT  OF   1884. 

Despite  the  facts  presented  in  this  letter  it  soon  became  evident  that  the 
war  was  to  go  on.  Hostilities  were  opened  with  the  introduction  of  a  bill 
in  the  Senate  on  the  25th  day  of  February,  1SS5,  to  amend  the  act  of  1884, 
so  as  to  eliminate  Pelham  Bay  Park,  and  materially  alter  the  law  in  other 
respects.  In  fact,  the  eiiactment  of  that  bill,  if  cjnstitutional,  would  have 
resulted  in  ihe  destrucliou  of  the  New  Park  system  beyond  the  Harlem. 

Mr.  Grace's  bill  was  accompanied  by  a  memorial  to  the  Legislature 
setting  forth  his  reasons  why  the  Act  of  1SS4  should  not  stand,  chief  among 
which  was  the  distance  of  the  parks,  particularly  that  on  the  Sound,  from 
the  city,  the  justice  of  assessing  on  the  adjoining  lands  a  portion  of  the 
cost,  the  obstacles  presented  by  the  Constituiional  amendment  to  the  issue 
of  bonds,  and  other  points  which  had  already  been  fully  considered  and 
discussed. 

The  errors  and  misstatements  were  exposed  and  corrected  in  a  reply  for- 
warded by  Mr.  Marsh  to  the  Legislature  a  few  days  thereafter.  After 
showing  the  superficial  nature  of  the  objections  urged  against  the  act,  Mr. 
Marsh  concluded  as  follows: 

"  The  Mayor,  by  his  memorial  and  bill,  proposes  a  slow  acquisition  of  the 
lands  for  new  parks;  and  at  the  rate  of  a  million  of  dollars  a  year.  If, 
therefore,  as  the  Mayor  claims,  these  parks  would  cost  t  tventy  millions,  it 
would  be  twenty  years  before  the  last  installment  of  lauds  would  be  bought. 


O 


00 


CO 


(fQ 


THE  NEW"  PARKS.  149 

By  that  time,  according  to  the  unvarying  rate  of  increase  for  the  past  sixty 
years,  the  population  of  our  city  will  be  about  four  millions,  having  now 
l,6'i0,000.  By  that  time  the  area  within  these  locations  will  be  filled  with 
bouses  and  people,  and  the  value  of  the  lands  to  be  taken,  probably  a 
hundred  millions  of  dollars.  How  can  the  city  afford  to  take  these  grounds 
at  this  rapidly  increasing  value  through  all  that  time?  The  thing  is  absurd. 
If,  at  that  time,  we  should  want  large  parks  we  would  be  pushed  up 
further  into  Westchester ;  and,  for  her  seaside  parks,  perhaps  into  Connec- 
ticut. You  cannot  afford  to  take,  for  park  purposes,  a  pam  respactable  ia 
size  for  such  a  city,  la  i'"s  populous  or  business  portions,  purchase  and  raze 
its  buildings,  and  sweep  away  the  inhabitants.  An  equal  area  cannot  now 
be  obtained  anywhere  south  of  the  Harlem  River  under  four  hundred  mil- 
lions of  dollars  at  the  prevailing  price?;  and,  if  bought,  it  would  take 
twenty  years  and  an  immense  sum  to  remove  the  buildings,  plant  the  trees, 
sow  the  grass  and  prepare  it  for  a  park.  But  it  would  take  too  much  space 
to  answer  all  the  errors  and  misapprehensions  which  are  crowded  into  the 
narrow  space  of  the  memorial.  Perhaps  no  other  document  of  equal  length 
is  so  full  of  them." 

MR.    grace's   "mass  meeting"  declared   "  A  DEAD   FAILURE." 

To  assist  operations  at  Albany  a  movement  was  organized  by  Mr.  Grace 
and  his  adherents  in  New  York,  which  culminated  in  a  meeting  at  Chicker- 
ing  Hall  on  the  23d  of  March.  This  was  preceded  by  the  distribution  of 
thousands  of  circulars  in  several  of  the  principal  thoroughfares  and  at  the 
Elevated  Railway  stations.  In  some  of  these  it  was  stated  that  the  parks 
would  cose  from  ten  to  fifty  millions  of  dollar?— a  wide  range  certainly— 
and  in  others  that  the  park  on  the  Sound  would  alone  be  ten  millions. 

Agents  were  sent  to  the  tenemen*^^  houses  with  petitions  and  the  occupants 
were  induced  to  sign  by  the  false  statement  that,  as  the  parks  could  only  be 
paid  for  by  direct  taxation,  their  rents  would  be  increased  until  such  time 
as  the  whole  expense  was  cleared  off.  So  unscrupulous  and  mendacious 
were  some  of  the  parties  engaged  in  this  business  of  falsification  that  one  of 
them  had  the  audacity  to  tell  a  friend  of  the  author  that  "Mr,  Mullaly  him- 
self is  in  favor  of  the  petition." 

With  very  few  exceptions  the  press  of  the  city  gave  no  countenance  to 
these  efforts  to  overthrow  the  legislation  of  1884.  The  New  York  Herald, 
speaking  of  the  "  mass  meeting  " against  the  parks,  said:  "  The  dead  failure 
of  the  carefully-nursed  meetmg  in  Chickering  Hall  last  evening,  to  foment 
opposition  to  the  new  parks,  is  conclusive  that  the  people  want  them  and 
are  determined  to  have  them,  and  that  Mayor  Grace  is  unreasonable. 
Zealous  efforts  were  made  to  fill  the  hall.  The  Mayor's  influence  was 
actively  exerted  to  get  up  '  a  demonstration  '  to  which  he  could  '  point  with 
pride.'  But  the  floor  was  only  moderately  filled,  and  the  gallery,  except  on 
the  front  row  of  its  seats,  was  dismally  empty.  Before  the  time  the  resolu- 
tions were  put  to  vote  half  even  of  the  scanty  audience  collected  with  so 
much  pains  perceived  the  situation  and  slipped  out,  and  of  the  remainder  so 
many  voted  "No"  that  it  was  fairly  doubtful  whether  they  were  not 
defeated,  though  the  chairman  (Mr.  James  A.  Roosevelt)  of  course  declared 


150  THE  NEW  PARKS. 

them  carried.  *  *  *  *  if  Mayor  Grace  is  properly  sensitive  to  public 
opinion  his  own  meeting  is  an  urgent  warning  to  him  to  change  his  course 
about  the  new  parks." 

In  a  previous  article  the  Herald,  warning  him  against  his  announced 
opposition,  remarked:  "  Mr.  Grace  has  been  Mayor  forty -four  days,  and 
on  not  one  of  them  has  he  omitted  to  assure  the  inhabitants  in  some  letter 
or  other  that  he  is  '  big  with  blessings'  for  the  city.  *  *  *  if  the  sacri- 
fice of  the  new  parks  is  a  specimen  of  the  blessings  Mayor  Grace's  admin- 
istration has  in  reserve  for  the  city,  his  assertion  that  he  means  to  serve  out 
his  term  at  all  hazards  is  deplorable." 

HIS  PURPOSE  EXPOSED. 

An  explanation  was  given  by  the  same  paper,  in  a  later  issue,  of  the 
motives  by  which  he  was  inspired  in  his  opposition  to  the  new  Harlem 
River  Bridge  at  One  Hundred  and  Eighty-first  street,  as  well  as  to  the  new 
parks.  "  It  is  not  a  secret,"  said  that  paper,  "  that  the  underlying  motive 
of  Mr.  Grace's  opposition  to  the  new  parks  and  the  Harlem  Bridge  is  polit- 
ical. He  is  busily  building  a  political  machine  within  the  city  govern- 
ment for  his  personal  advancement,  and  cannot  see  a  way  to  make  the 
Bridge  act  help  that  purpose,  for  he  believes  that  his  two  associates  in  the 
power  of  appointment  will  combine  against  him.  Neither  could  he  see  a 
way  to  make  the  New  Park  act  serve  his  purpose,  for  the  New  Park  Com- 
mission was  already  filled." 

The  New  York  World  took  strong  ground  on  the  necessity  for  an 
increase  of  our  park  area.  '"New  York's  manifest  destiny,"  it  declared  in 
a  leading  editorial,  the  day  after  the  meeting,  "  is  unmistakeable.  We  are 
making  preparations  for  a  city  of  four  or  five  millions.  Shall  we  commit 
the  mistake  our  ancestors  committed,  and  fail  to  provide  parks  for  the 
health,  recreation  and  happiness  of  the  coming  generations  ?  As  well 
might  we  have  heeded  the  selfish  opposition  of  the  tax-grudgers  and  have 
refused  to  provide  the  future  New  York  with  a  sufficient  supply  of  water. 
It  is  urged  that  we  cannot  incur  any  more  debt  under  the  Constitutional 
restriction.  We  do  not  believe  that  any  Court  will  decide  our  indebtedness 
to  be  any  more  than  our  net  debt.  At  all  events,  let  us  keep  the  new  parks 
in  view  and  secure  them  as  speedily  as  possible." 

The  Times  said  "  that  only  one  side  was  presented,  and  there  was  no 
real  discussion  of  the  mooted  questions.  ^^  *  *  it  ought  to  be  remem- 
bered the  while  just  what  the  question  is.  It  is  not  proposed  to  provide 
costly  parks  for  posterity,  to  be  paid  for  now,  but  to  secure  lands  for  parks 
to  be  paid  for  in  thirty  years,  and  it  would  have  been  fortunate  if  those 
whose  posterity  we  are  had  exercised  a  little  foresight  in  such  matters." 

THE  OPPOSITION  AGAIN  DEFEATED. 

The  Mail  and  Express  declared  that  "  the  anti-park  meeting  at  Chicker- 
ing  Hall,  last  night,  was  a  solemn  failure.  As  a  mass  meeting  it  was  an 
utter  failure.  Free  discussion  was  no  part  of  the  programme.  Mr.  Luther 
R.  Marsh  applied  beforehand  for  a  hearing  and  was  refused.  Subsequent 
application  was  made  to  the  Mayor,  and  he  said  that  he  could  do  nothing, 


THE  NEW"   PARKS.  151 

although  the  appeal  was  put  ou  the  ground  that  the  audience  themselves 
might  desire  to  know  something  of  the  other  side." 

The  TeZer/ram said  that  the  meeting  was  "not  representative,  and  that 
the  demonstration  was  neither  large  nor  enthusiastic." 

After  the  decision  of  the  Court  of  Appeals,  the  New  York  World  referred 
to  the  subject  in  these  emphatic  w.irds:  "The  good  sense  of  the  people 
approves  the  acquisition  of  land  for  parks  in  the  new  section  of  the  city  at 
once,  while  land  is  cheap  and  unimproved.  In  1884,  the  Legislature,  in 
response  to  public  sentiment,  passed  a  law  providing  for  the  acquisition  of 
land  for  a  number  of  new  parks  in  the  annexed  territory.  Mayor  Grace 
obstructed  the  law  and  sought  to  overthrow  it.  He  wanted  a  new  law,  with 
Commissioners  of  his  own  selection." 

While  Mr.  Grace's  bill  was  p3nding  an  important  meeting  of  the  joint 
Committees  on  Cities  of  the  Senate  and  Assembly  was  held  in  the  Capitol. 
At  this  meeting  the  argument  on  behalf  of  the  new  p  irks  was  made  by 
Messrs.  Marsh,  Hinsdale  and  Joseph  S.  Wood,  and  a  subsequent  one  was 
addressed  by  ex  Judge  Wells,  General  Tremaine,  C.  D.  Burrill  and  J.  S. 
Wood,  who  illustrated  his  able  and  convincing  arguments  with  several  val- 
uable maps,  showing  the  comparative  park  areas  of  New  York,  Paris  and 
London.  This  closed  the  discussion,  and  the  result  was  the  defeat  of  Mr. 
Grace  in  the  field  of  his  own  selection,  the  Legislature  of  the  State,  the 
committee  absolutely  refusing  to  stultify  itself  by  interfering  in  any  manner 
with  the  legislation  of  the  previous  year. 

INSIDIOUS  ATTEMPT  TO  INVOLVE  THE  KEAL  ESTATE  EXCHANGE. 

Hostilities,  however,  were  not  confined  to  the  State  Capitol.  The  Real 
Estate  Exchange  was,  by  the  connivance  of  some  of  the  members,  involved 
in  the  strife,  much  to  the  chagrin  and  mortification  of  the  great  majority. 
This  was,  so  to  speak,  a  flank  movement,  and  in  a  quarter  frjm  which  it 
was  wholly  unexpected. 

On  the  30th  of  February,  1885,  a  resolution  was  presented  by  Dr.  John  T. 
Nagle,  of  the  Bureau  of  Vital  Statistics  of  the  Health  Department,  directing 
the  appointment  of  a  committee  of  five  "  to  furnish  whatever  information 
they  may  be  able  to  ascertain  regarding  the  number  of  acres,  the  location, 
probable  cost  of  construction,  etc.,  of  public  parks  in  the  Twenty-third  and 
Twenty-fourth  Wards  and  the  vicinity  thereof,  which  were  authorized  by 
an  act  of  the  Legislature  passed  April  19,  1883,  and  also  the  methods  by 
which  such  parks  are  to  be  paid  for."  The  committee  appointed  consisted 
of  John  T.  Nagle,  M.  D.,  chairman,  Frank  S.  Allen,  James  Stokes,  Jules  E. 
Brugiere  and  James  L.  Wells. 

Dr.  Nagle,  without  consultation  with  any  of  the  members  of  the  com- 
mittee, prepared  a  "report,"  and  presenting  it  at  one  of  the  meetings 
requested  some  of  the  members  to  sign  it,  which  they  declined  to  do.  Hav- 
ing failed  in  this  he  thereupon,  as  chairman,  but  without  the  authority  or 
consent  of  the  committee,  sent  to  the  daily  papers  printed  copies  of  his 
report  from  which  a  synopsis  and  extracts  were  published.  In  this  docu- 
ment he  asserted  that  the  cost  of  the  land  would  be  from  $12,003,000  to 
$30,000,000,  besides  "a  large  additional  purchase  for  Pelham   Bay  Park." 


152  THE  NEW   PARKS. 

He  al30  stated  that  the  money  would  have  t")  be  raided  by  direct  taxation, 
whereas  the  law  provided  that  the  payments  were  to  be  made  in  thirty -year 
bonds  bearing  3  per  cent,  interest. 

The  Legislative  Committee  of  the  Exchange,  as  soon  as  it  detected  the 
imposition  practiced  upon  it,  held  a  meeting  and  passed  a  resolution  to  the 
effect  "  that  where  a  subject  has  been  referred  for  consideration  and  report 
to  a  special,  or  sub  committee,  that  no  report,  either  majority  or  minority, 
shall  be  issued  by  or  on  behalf  of  sush  committee,  or  by  any  member 
thereof,  xinless  such  report  shall  have  been  previously  made  to  and 
received  by  this  committee  ;  and  any  report  issued  shall  state  at  its  head 
whether  it  is  a  unanimous,  majority,  or  minority  report." 

The  "report,"  so  called,  which  caused  this  trouble  in  the  Exchange  and 
which  roused  it  up  to  such  a  pi-oper  sense  of  indignation,  was,  in  fact,  a 
tissue  of  misstatements  from  beginning  to  end— false  in  its  estimate  of  the 
cost  of  the  land  for  the  new  parks,  false  in  its  estimate  of  expense,  false  in 
its  premises  and  false  in  its  deductions  ;  false  in  its  "  facts"  and  false  in  its 
figures.  And  this  "  report,"  which  was  a  gross  imposition  on  the  institu- 
tion and  repudiated  as  a  piece  of  sharp  practice,  was  printed  and  dis- 
tributed among  viembers  of  the  Exchange,  the  taxpayers  and  property 
owners  of  the  city.  The  accuracy  of  its  statements  may  be  judged  from 
the  assertion  that  "in  the  Twenty-third  and  Twenty-fourth  Wards  177 
small  parks  have  already  been  laid  out."  Of  course  a  section  so  liberally 
provided  with  "parks"'  should  be  perfectly  satisfied.  But  when  it  is 
understood  that  the  aggregate  area  of  170  of  these  177  parks,  which  were 
only  laid  out  on  paper  and  not  taken,  does  not  exceed  thirty  acres,  the 
trustworthy  character  of  the  statistics  presented  in  the  "  report"  becomes  at 
once  apparent.  Every  triangle,  every  petty  grass  plot  was  dignified  therein 
with  the  title  of  "'park." 

AN  ADROIT  BUT  AN  UNSUCCESSFUL  SCHEaiE. 

Accompanying  this  distorted  and  misleading  presentation  of  the  park 
question  was  a  letter  dated  March  12,  in  which  an  attempt  was  made  to 
alarm  the  public  by  the  reckless  and  unwarranted  assertion  that  the  whole 
expense  of  acquiring  the  new  parks  would  be  imposed  by  direct  taxation. 
Still  another  document  was  added  in  the  form  of  a  printed  letter,  which  was 
to  be  signed  by  the  person  to  whom  it  was  sent  and  forwarded  in  a  printed 
and  stamped  envelope,  of  which  this  is  a  fac  simile  : 

[Stamp."' 

HON.  WM.  R  GRACE, 

Mayor  of  the  City  of  New  York, 

CITY  HALL, 

New  York, 

The  form  of  the  letter  which  was  to  be  transmitted  to  the  Mayor 
expressed  the  desire  of  the  sigjer  "to  have  his  name  enrolled  as  being  in 
favor  of  the  bill  now  pending  in  the  New  York  State  Legislature." 


"D 


DO 


"D 


THE  NEW  PARKS.  155 

The  purpose  of  this  schtme  was  to  impress  the  public  and  the  Legislature 
with  the  idea  that  the.  Real  Estate  Exchange  was  not  only  opposed  to  ihe 
parks,  but  that  it  was  most  pronounced  and  active  in  its  opposition.  How- 
ever, it  was  exposed  in  time,  and  tha  effort  to  falsify  the  position  of  the 
Exchange  in  relation  to  the  park  question  very  properly  and  emphatically 
rebuked  by  its  Legislative  Committee. 

For  the  service  rendered  in  this  side  fight  on  the  parks,  Messrs.  James  L. 
Wells,  D.  Q.  Croly,  J.  W".  Brugiere,  James  Stokes,  Wm.  C.  Church  and 
Wm.  C.  Orr  are  entitled  to  special  mention  and  grateful  recognition. 
These  gentlemen  took  a  firm  stand  against  what  Mr.  Church  justly  stig- 
matized as  "an  attempt  to  put  the  Real  Estate  Exchange  in  a  false 
position." 

"Let  me,"  said  Mr,  Church,  in  a  letter  to  a  friend,  "  put  you  on  your 
guard  against  the  attempt  which  has  been  made  to  represent  the  Real 
Estate  Exchange  as  opposed  to  the  parks.  The  matter  has  been  considered 
by  two  several  sub-committees  of  the  Committees  on  Legislation  of  the 
Exchange  ;  one  of  these  presented  an  unanimous  report,  and  the  other  a 
majority  report,  advising  that  no  action  be  taken  by  the  Exchange.  Both 
of  these  reports  have  been  adopted  by  the  Committee  on  Legislation,  which 
in  these  matters  represented  the  Exchange.  Oae  of  these  reports  was 
adopted  to-day.  I  do  not  believe  there  is  any  serious  opposition  to  the 
parks,  except  what  is  being  worked  up,  skillful  use  being  made  of  the 
doubt  as  to  whether  we  may  not  have  to  submit  to  taxation  to  pay  for 
them  in  a  lump.  I  knew  nothing  about  the  parks  until  I  came  to  investi- 
gate the  subject,  and  have  no  interest  in  them,  and  I  write  now  because 
my  sense  of  fair  dealing  has  been  outraged  by  an  attempt  to  put  the  Real 
Estate  Exchange  in  a  false  position.  Dr.  Nagle,  in  his  pamphlet,  quoted 
the  summing  up  our  committee  gave  of  the  arguments  presented  before  us 
against  the  parks.  He  did  not  quote  our  final  conclusion,  which  ivas  not 
to  meddle  ivith  the  subject.'^ 

Mr.  Marsh  addressed  one  of  the  meetings  of  the  committee  and  with  such 
good  effect  that  in  their  report  they  said  "  they  did  not  feel  themselves  at 
liberty  to  re  discuss  the  matter  so  far,  as  it  has  already  been  decided  by  an 
overiuhebning  majority  of  the  Legislature  and  indorsed  by  men  of  the 
highest  standing  and  experience  in  the  community.''^ 

Thus  ended  the  side  fight  in  the  Real  Estate  Exchange,  a  body  which 
from  its  character  and  the  purposes  of  its  organization  would  naturally 
have  been  the  very  last  institution  in  the  city  to  array  itself  against  a 
measure  so  well  calculated  and  adapted  to  promote  its  own  special  business 
interests.  It  was  certainly  a  novel  idea  to  make  use  of  such  a  body  for  the 
purpose  of  arresting  a  great  public  improvement,  the  success  of  which,  in 
its  enhancement  of  the  value  of  real  estate,  must  inevitably  tend  to  its 
advantage  and  the  benefit  of  its  members. 

THE  CONTEST  IN  THE  BOARD  OF  ALDERMEN. 

In  1S:86  another  onslaught  was  made  on  the  parks.  This  time,  however, 
it  was  in  the  Board  of  Aldermen.  On  the  llth  of  January  Alderman 
Mooney  offered  a  resolution  instructing  ' '  the  Corporation  Counsel  to  draft 


156  THE  NEW  PARKS. 

an  act  and,  in  behalf  of  the  Aldermen,  present  the  same  to  the  Legislature, 
amendatory  of  the  New  Parks  act,  specifying  that  no  sum  greater  than 
three  millicns  of  dollars  shall  be  imposed  upon  the  City  Treasury  for  the 
purposes  of  said  Act,  and  providing  that  the  Commissioners  of  Appraisal 
shall  begin  the  purchase  of  land  suggested  for  parks  in  those  localities 
which  lie  nearest  to  Harlem  River." 

This  was  referred  to  the  Committee  on  Lands  and  Places,  w'.ich  reported 
a  bill  in  accordance  with  the  resolution — and  also  eliruinating  Pelham  Bay 
Park— on  the  3d  of  March,  on  which  occasion  Vice-President  Jaehne,  now 
a  resident  at  Sing  Sing,  was  called  to  the  chair  and  presided  over  the 
discussion  which  followed. 

It  is  sufficient  to  say  that,  although  the  bill  was  introduced  into  the  Leg- 
islature, the  Corporation  Counsel  refused  his  sanction  to  the  attempted 
repeal  of  the  law  and  authorized  the  statement  that  he  was  "  for  the  parks 
as  they  are." 

Senator  Traphagen  presented  still  another  bill,  which  was  designed  to 
dispose  of  the  whole  question  at  one  fell  stroke  by  repealing  the  entire  act 
of  1884.  As  it  was  not  pushed,  however,  it  went  the  way  of  all  moribund 
legislation  and  was  consigned  to  the  limbo  of  defunct  bills. 

To  the  Legislative  Committee  which  had  the  Aldermanic  bill  under  con- 
sideration, Mr.  Marsh  addressed  an  argument,  in  which  he  presented  the 
unconstitutionality  of  the  proposed  repeal  with  such  force,  and  sustained 
his  position  with  such  a  formidable  array  of  authorities,  that  the  commit- 
tee decided  by  a  vote  of  nine  to  two  to  make  an  adverse  report,  which  was 
subsequently  done. 

AN  ELOQUENT  PROTEST. 

In  his  admirable  and  conclusive  summing  up  Mr.  Marsh  dwelt  with  par- 
ticular emphasis  on  the  trying  and  triumphant  ordeal  through  which  this 
great  measure  had  passed,  and  as  the  jDrincipal  attacks  of  its  enemies  had 
been  directed  against  the  magnificent  playgroimd  on  the  Sound,  he  said  : 

"To  repeal  this  park  would  really  seem  like  legislative  boy's  play — 
give  and  take  back  again.  Did  not,"  he  asked,  "  the  three  former  Legisla- 
tures look  thoroughly  into  the  matter,  the  reasons  for  and  the  reasons 
against  this  Pelham  Bay  Park  ?  Did  not  their  committees,  both  of  the 
House  and  the  Senate,  listen  to  the  most  elaborate  arguments  on  both 
sides  ?  Did  not  Governor  Cleveland  study  all  briefs  and  pamphlets  sub- 
mitted to  him  on  the  subject  and  then  sign  the  bill  ?  Did  not  these  legisla- 
.tors  know  their  own  minds  ?  Did  they  not  see  that  the  great  land  owners 
•and  taxpayers,  as  well  as  the  people  of  the  city,  wanted  this  park  with  the 
othe>-s  ?  Were  not  these  legislators  and  the  Governor  competent  to  form 
just  judgments  on  this  subject  ?  Shall  their  solemn  action  be  now  reversed  ? 
Is  there  no  stability  in  or  reliance  on  well-considered  legislation  ?  Is  there 
any  use  in  obtaining  an  act  of  the  Legislature  if  the  next  one,  without 
change  or  circumstance,  is  to  repeal  it  ?  This  is  not  a  question  of  forfeiture 
for  alleged  misconduct  or  fraud,  but  of  deliberate  repudiation  of  the 
^deliberate  acts  of  former  Legislatures. 

"  I  do  not  abate  one  jot  or  tittle  of  my  concluding  remarks  on  the  rehear- 


00 


T) 


O 


THE  NEW  PARKS.  159 

ing  of  the  Parks  act  before  the  corresponding  Assembly  Committee  on 
April  24th,  18S4.  They  have  been  the  rather  strengthened  and  intensified 
by  experience  since.  I  will  repeat  them  here,  with  two  years  of  confirma- 
tion of  their  head : 

Gentlemen  of  the  Committee:  I  feel  an  absorbing  and  enduring  interest 
in  this  enterprise.  It  is  not  a  sentiment  of  recent  growth.  We  cannot 
now  know,  we  cannot  now  appreciate  the  greatness  of  the  work  and  its 
increasing  value  and  importance  as  the  years  go  by.  When  some  thirty 
yearj  hence  (the  purchase  bonds  then  maturing)  our  city,  by  the  inevitable 
law  which  has  ruled  the  past,  holding  within  her  limits  more  than  five  mil- 
lions of  people;  with  abodes  lining  these  parks;  the  territory  all  below 
packed  with  inhabitants;  these  recreation  grounds  inviting  all  classes  to 
their  ample  hospitality;  the  fame  of  them  having  brought  here  for  resi- 
dence families  of  wealth  and  culture  from  other  parts  of  the  Union,  and 
visitors  from  all  parts  of  thp  world;  the  treasury  of  the  city  demonstrating 
that  all  these  parks  are,  in  effect,  a  gift  to  the  city,  bringing  large  endow- 
ments besides;  then  will  the  men  of  tbat  time  begin,  but  as  yet  only  begin, 
to  realize  the  magnitude  and  usefulness  of  this  day's  work. 

"  I  put  these  facts  and  prophecies  and  arguments  on  record.  I  perpet- 
uate them  in  enduring  type,''  said  Mr.  March  in  a  fine  burst  of  melodious 
prose — "  partly  that  they  may  the  more  conveniently  and  quickly  be  read 
and  appreciated  by  you,  and  partly  that  the  people  may  see  and  ever  know 
some  of  the  reasons  why  this  park  should  stand  as  it  is.  And  if,  indeed, 
the  action  of  three  Legislatures  should  now  be  reversed,  and  even  if  such 
action  could  stand  before  the  breath  of  the  Constitution,  this  record  will 
enable  the  people,  as  years  go  and  come,  to  see  and  know  how  much  better, 
richer,  healthier  and  more  prosperous  and  attractive  our  city  would  have 
been  if  this  cheap,  magnificent  and  noble  pleasure-ground  had  been  saved 
to  them,  somewhat — though  then  with  much  fuller  knowledge,  for  the 
records  will  be  complete — as  we  now  see,  after  the  lapse  of  seventy-seven 
years,  how  beneficent  would  have  been  the  park  enterprise  of  De  Witt 
Clinton  had  the  authorities  of  that  day  seen  with  his  eyes  and  judged  with 
his  judgment." 

AN  ATTACK  FROM  A  NEW   QUARTER. 

The  last  assault  upon  the  new  parks  was  made  in  the  spring  of  ^1887,  at 
the  instance  of  some  eighty  residents  ajid  taxpayers  of  the  town  of  Pelham, 
Westchester  Co. ,  in  the  form  of  a  petition  to  the  Mayor,  Aldermen  and 
Commonalty  of  the  City  of  New  York,  "  entreating  their  assistance  in 
procuring  the  passage  of  an  act  repealing  so  much  of  the  Park  bill  of  1884 
as  provides  for  the  taking  of  Pelham  Bay  Park." 

This  demand  was  made  on  the  ground  that  the  appropriation  of  so  much 
land— about  one-half  of  the  whole  area  of  Pelham — would,  if  taxes  were  not 
paid  upon  the  park  by  the  city  of  New  York,  so  increase  the  assessment  as 
to  make  the  burden  intolerable.  It  appeared,  however,  in  the  course  of 
the  controversy,  on  a  comparison  of  the  names  of  the  eighty  taxpayers 
with  the  tax  and  assessment  roll  of  the  town  of  Pelham,  that  only  thirty 
were  on  the  list,  while  of  the  $36,957.03  levied  on  the  town  the  huge  sum  of 
$567.77  was  paid  by  the  petitioners !  Yet,  on  the  protest  of  these  a  bill 
was  prepared  and  introduced  in  the  Legislature  for  the  excision  of  PeLham 
Bay  Park  I 


160  THE  ISIEW  PARKS. 

On  the  3d  of  May,  Mr.  F.  R.  Coudert  appeared  before  the  Legislative 
Committee  on  Cities,  and  in  the  course  of  an  able  and  conclusive  argument 
proved  that  "although  the  fee  or  legal  title  vfill  not  pass  from  the 
present  owners  to  the  city  until  the  report  of  the  Commissioners  shall  be 
confirmed,  yet  the  lands  have  been  taken  by  the  city  and  appropriated 
and  condemned." 

The  committee  took  the  same  view  of  the  matter  as  the  learned  counsel 
and  refused  to  interfere  in  any  way  with  the  act.  Thus,  for  the  third  time, 
the  Legislature  refused  to  undo  the  work  of  1884. 

FINAL   REPULSE  AND  END   OF  THE  WAR. 

While  the  bill  was  yet  under  discussion  in  the  State  Capitol,  an 
effort  was  made  to  secure  a  report  in  its  favor  from  the  Committee  on 
the  Law  Department  of  the  Board  of  Aldermen,  of  which  Hon.  D.  F. 
Dowling  is  chairman.  The  chairman,  however,  was  resolved  that  a  subject 
of  such  importance  to  the  city  should  not  be  disposed  of  without  due 
consideration  and  that  its  merits  should  be  fully  discussed  before  his 
committee. 

A  day  was,  therefore,  appointed,  and  Mr.  Coudert  made  the  argument 
which  covered  the  essential  legal,  financial  and  other  points  of  the  subject, 
and  which  produced  a  marked  effect  on  the  committee.  As  there  was  a 
decided  difference  of  opinion  among  its  members  on  the  propriety  and 
wisdom  of  any  further  effort  to  interfere  with  the  operation  of  the  act  of 
1884,  in  view  of  the  decision  of  the  Courts,  the  committee  took  no  action  in 
the  matter,  and  thus  ended  the  second  attempt  in  the  Board  of  Aldermen  to 
effect  a  repeal  of  the  law. 

An  independent,  but,  as  it  proved,  an  ineffectual  movement  was  made  by 
a  few  property  owners,  whose  lands  lay  inside  and  along  the  lines  of  the 
parks,  to  secure  the  passage  of  a  bill  by  which  they  would  be  enabled, 
through  the  adjustment  cf  the  exterior  boundaries  and  the  alteration  of  the 
maps,  to  have  their  particular  tracts  placed  outside  and  immediately  in 
front  of  the  parks.  As  special  reference,  however,  has  already  been  made 
to  this  adroit  little  manoeuvre,  it  is  unnecessary  to  say  more  than  that  it 
was  introduced  in  the  Legislature,  and  that  it  shared  the  fate  of  every 
other  attack  upon  the  integrity  of  the  law. 

The  PAR'feS  AND  PARKWAYS,  THEREFORE,  REMAIN  IN  THEIR  ENTIBETT 
AND  AS  DESCRIBED  BY  METES  AND  BOUNDS  IN  THE  ACT  OP  1884. 

But,  as  may  well  be  conceived,  this  triumph  was  achieved  only  through 
unflagging  zeal,  through  many  sacrifices,  through  determined,  sustained 
effort  during  six  years,  in  two  of  which — 1885-6— the  war  against  the  parks 
was  carried  on,  as  described,  with  a  total  disregard  of  the  merits  of  the 
subject,  by  Mr.  Grace,  who  in  one  instance,  with  the  particulars  of  which  the 
writer  is  thoroughly  familiar,  debased  his  high  office  by  using  it  as  a  means 
of  gratifying  his  private  revenge.  Indeed,  the  contrast  between  the  character 
of  the  warfare  waged  by  ex-Mayor  Grace  and  that  of  his  predecessor  was 
most  marked,  for  it  is  due  to  Mr.  Edson  to  say  that,  while  his  opposition 
was  strenuous,  persistent  and  occasionally  bitter,  yet  he  never  so  far  for- 
got the  dignity  of  his  position  as  to  descend  to  the  low  level  of  personal 


THE  NEW  PARKS.  161 

hostility,  nor  thought  of  inflicting,  through  his  oflacial  power,  a  penalty  for 
a  difference  of  opinion  on  a  great  public  question. 


To  have  won  this  signal  victory  for  the  people's  parks  against  a  powerful 
opposition;  to  have  saved  the  movement  from  the  pitfalls  into  which  many 
a  noble  and  benevolent  ecterprise  has  fallen  and  been  lost;  to  have  upheld 
the  cause  against  a  power  controlling  and  wielding  the  official  influence 
and  patronage  of  the  municipal  government;  to  have  carefully  and 
constantly  guarded  that  cause  and  preserved  it  from  the  taint  and  suspicion 
of  sordid,  mercenary  motives;  to  have  prevented,  above  all,  its  perversion 
to  political  designs  and  uses;  in  a  word,  to  have  maintained  throughout 
the  long,  harassing  and  oftentimes  acrimonious  contest  the  purity  of 
purpose  in  which  this  beneficent  project  was  conceived;  to  have  done  all 
this  demanded,  on  the  part  of  its  promoters  and  advocates,  unceasing  vigi- 
lance, unrelaxing,  determined  effort,  and  a  resolution  that  could  not  be 
driven  from  its  purpose  either  by  menaces,  so  freely  and  unscrupulously 
used,  or  the  employment  of  insidious  and  questionable  methods  by  the 
opposition.  The  project  of  the  New  Parks  was,  as  already  stated,  con- 
ceived in  the  purest  of  raotives — for  the  welfare  of  the  whole  people  and 
especially  for  the  benefit  of  the  toilers  of  the  great  city.  For  them,  and  the 
millions  to  be,  the  battle  was  fought;  for  all  the  triiunph  was  achieved. 

The  friends  of  the  movement  were  not  to  be  swerved  from  the  prosecu- 
tion of  their  grand  purpose,  confident  that  the  success  of  their  efforts 
would  confer  a  lasting  benefit  by  promoting  the  welfare,  the  physical 
culture  and  moral  well-being  of  the  people,  and  the  prosperity,  the 
embellishment  and  attractiveness  of  our  great  metropolis.  They  believed 
that  it  would  accomplish  for  the  New  York  of  1S87  and  succeeding  years 
what  New  York's  most  illustrious  Mayor  and  Governor  had  desired  to 
effect  over  three-quarters  of  a  century  ago,  but  whose  beneficent  design 
was  defeated  by  the  culpable  apathy  of  his  official  successors;  and  in  this 
belief  they  persevered  and  worked  till  their  efforts  ivere  croumed  with  a 
glorious  victory. 


THE  FRIENDS  OF  THE  PARKS. 


IMPORTANT    CORKESPONDE^NTCE. 


LETTERS  OF  REAL  ESTATE  OWNERS,  CAPITALISTS,  BANKERS, 
LAWYERS,  MERCHANTS,  Etc.— REPRESENTING  AN  AG- 
GREGATE CAPITAL  OF  TWO  THOUSAND  MILLIONS  OP 
DOLLARS—TO  EX-MAYOR  ED30N. 


The  following  letter  was  addressed  to  Mayor  Edson,  who  had  unfortu- 
nately changed  his  attitude  en  the  park  question  some  time  after  his  inaug- 
uration, and  although  he  was  even  then  a  member  of  the  Executive  Com- 
mittee of  the  New  York  Park  Association,  he  had  not  only  resolved  to 
oppose  the  bill,  but,  as  stated  in  the  history  of  the  movement,  he  arrayed 
the  heads  of  the  municipal  departments  in  hostility  to  the  measure. 
However,  if  Mayor  Edson  was  not  to  be  convinced  by  the  facts  and  figures 
submitted  for  his  consideration,  they  had  their  effect  in  other  quartars  and 
materially  aided  the  good  work. 

When  Mr.  Grace  assailed  the  legislation  of  18S4,  and  announced  his  inten- 
tion to  substitute  a  plan  of  his  own  for  the  park  system  laid  out  in  the  act 
of  that  year,  nearly  all  the  gentlemen  whose  names  are  signed  to  this  letter 
united  in  a  still  stronger  and  more  urgent  communication  protesting  against 
any  farther  interference  with  the  law  and  emphatically  expressing  their 
"  desire  that  the  act  passed  stand  as  it  is  " 

New  York,  February  29,  1884. 
To  Hon.  Franklin  Edson,  Mayor  of  the  City  of  New  York: 

We  consider  the  enlargement  of  our  park  area  so  important  a  matter  that 
we  beg  respectfully  to  call  your  especial  attention  tD  a  few  of  the  salient 
points  in  tbe  very  able  report  of  the  Commission  appointed  by  yourself, 
which  report  we  most  f  uHy  approve  and  indoi'se. 

1st.  The  Central  Park  c  )st  the  city $6,666,381 

Construction  account  and  maintenance 16,378  84t 

Interest  at  7  per  cent,  during  25  years 20,755,92  5 

Total $13,8ul,150 

Taxes  collected  during  this  period  in  the  wards  in 

which  the  park  is  situated." $110,000,000 

Estimating  fifty  millions  of  this  as  an  increase  from  ordinary  causes, 
there  remain  sixty  millions,  leaving  a  balance  to  the  credit  of  the  city  of 
seventeen  millions. 

The  city  thus  has  this  magnificent  domain  for  nothing,  with  the  enormous 
increase  of  tax  income  from  the  district  in  its  neighboriiood  besides. 

With  the  constantly  increasing  population,  and  the  consequent  imperative 
necessity  of  providing  more  parii  room,  there  is  no  doubt  tiiat  a  few  thou- 


THE  2^EW  PARKS. 


163 


sand  acres  secured  now,  north  of  the  Harlem  River  (a  portion  in  territory 
not  yet  annexed,  and  therefore  cheaper),  when  it  can  be  done  for  a  few 
millions  of  dollars,  would  similarly  prove  a  very  wise  and  profitable  pur- 
chase, and  save  millions  to  the  city. 

If  in  the  case  of  the  Central  Park  the  city  could  pay  7  per  cent  for  twenty- 
five  ypars  besides  enormous  expenditures,  and  have  the  land  free  and  clear, 
without  cost,  is  there  any  room  for  doubting  that  thirty-year  bonds,  issued 
now  ai3  to  3)^  per  cent.,  would  at  maturity  be  more  than  paid  for  by  the 
increased  tax  income  from  property  in  the  neighborhood? 

In  the  case  of  the  Central  Park  the  increase  of  values  was  in  some  instances 
about  300  per  cent,  within  a  year  after  the  purchase,  and  for  one  large  tract 
near  the  park,  which,  in  1857,  was  sold  for  $40,000,  the  owner  refused 
$1,250,000  in  1S69,  twelve  years  later. 

2d,  The  taxable  value  of  the  thiee  wards  in  which  Central  Park  is  situ- 
ated increased  from  twenty  six  and  one-half  to  three  hundred  and  twelve 
millions  from  1856  to  1S81,  and  contributes  about  one-third  of  the  whole 
expenses  of  the  city. 

These  facts  speak  louder  than  any  words,  and  the  silent  argument  of  these 
figures  must  be  sufficient  to  convince  the  most  skeptical.  We  must  not 
make  the  same  mistake  that  the  city  authorities  made  in  1809,  when  none  of 
the  pai  k  reservations  then  projected  were  carried  out,  entailing  a  loss  to 
the  city  of  several  hundred  millions  cf  dollars.  The  same  opposition  that 
then  proved  so  unfortunate  was  repeated  in  the  case  of  the  Central  Park 
and  delayed  the  purchase  several  years,  but  all  experience  now  demon- 
strates that  there  can  be  no  better  financial  uudertakiag  for  a  large  and 
growing  city  than  the  purchase  of  park  sites. 

3d.  As  to  the  sanitary  considerations,  they  are  too  well  known  and  too 
generally  admitted  to  be  dwelt  upon  here — our  object  being  merely  to 
recommend  the  purchase  of  the  land  now  as  a  wisefiuancial  enterprise.  We 
would,  however,  remind  you  that  in  the  matter  of  parks  our  metropolis- 
one  of  the  first  in  the  world— is  sadly  behind  the  age,  our  entire  park  terri- 
tory, even  with  the  Central  Park  (considered  by  some  so  large),  being  only 
1,094  acres,  against  172,000  in  Paris,  2:i,0i)0  in  London,  8,0  JO  in  v^ienna,  5,00i) 
in  Berlin  and  3,O0J  each  in  even  Philadelphia  and  Chicago.  The  purchase 
of  more  park  room  seems  imperative,  and  the  sooner  the  batter. 

We  are  yours,  re^psctfuUy, 
Jno,  Harsen  Rhoades,      Lewis  G.  Morris, 


August  Belmont, 
William  Astor, 
Edward  F.  Winslow, 
Jacob  D.  Vei  milye, 
Charles  M.  Fry, 
Thomas  L.  James, 
Frederick  D.  Tappen, 
G.  M.  Hard, 
John  T.  Agnew, 
Francis  Leland, 
Eugene  Dutilh, 
Robert  ^chell, 
Wi'liam  H.  Cox, 
Edward  Schell, 
John  A.  Stewart, 
Geo.  8  Coe. 
Roswell  G.  Rolston, 
Thomas  Hillbouse, 
Henry  P.  Hyde, 
William  H.  Macy, 
Samiivl  D.  Babcock, 
George  11.  Potts, 
Columbus  C  Baldwin, 
William  Dowd, 
William  Henry  Smith, 
John  S.  Crane, 


James  M.  Krown, 
Charles  D.  Dickey, 
Jesse  iSeligman, 
Thomas  C.  Acton, 
Charles  Lanier, 
Eugene  Kelley  &  Co., 
D.  O.  Mills, 
Robert  Winthrop, 
Isaac  N.  Phelps, 
Sidney  Dillon, 
Samuel  Sloan, 
Wm.  B  Dinsmore, 
M.  B.  Fielding, 
Edward  A.  Morrison, 
Arnold  &  Constable, 
H.  C.  Fahnestock, 
Arthur  Leary, 
J.  C.  Johnson, 
T.  P.  Earl, 
Rus5c41  Sage, 
John  Sloan, 
Julius  Wadswortb, 
Henry  Clews, 
George  Bliss, 
George  T.  Adee, 


Hon.  Charles  Donohue, 
Parka  Godwin, 
George  Jones, 
William  Cutting, 
Geo.  H.  Andrews, 
John  A.  Lowery, 
Hon.  James  M.  Varnum, 
John  Jay, 

William  M.  Evarts, 
Lloyd  Aspinwall, 
George  Sloan, 
Wm.  A.  Caldwell, 
James  F.  Dr-forest, 
Wm.  J.  Halstead, 
Robt.  A.  Livingston, 
James  L.  White, 
T.  C.  Eastman, 
W.  H.  Webb, 
Ambrose  Know, 
Edward  Kemp, 
Irving  Putnam, 
Stein  way  &  Co., 
Gustav  fcjchwab, 
John  H.  Watson, 
Horace  Porter, 


164  THE  NEW  PARKS. 

John  Jacob  Astor,  Albon  P.  Man,  Chauncey  M.  Depew, 

Morris  Franklin.  Hon.  Francis  C.  Barlow,  Hugh  Auchincloss, 

Aaron  J.  Vanderpool,  Geo.  Deforest  Lord,  Elliot  Rosevelt, 

Ex-Mayor  Ljmich  Ely,  George  McCuUough  Mil-  Sackett  M.  Barclay, 

Isaac  Btll,  ler.  Edw'd  Livingston  Lud- 

Samuel  Raynor,  Algernon  S.  Sullivan,  low, 

G.  S.  Scherraerhorn,  Jr. ,  Francis  N.  Bangs,  David  S.  Banks, 

Samuel  H.  Denton,  Peter  B.  Olney,  B.  H.  Van  Auken, 

H.  K.  Thnrber,  Wheeler  H.  Peckham,  James  M.  Bailey, 

Park  &  Tilford,  Fred'k  R.  Coudert,  D.  Colden  Murray, 

F.  P.  Gunther,  Hon.  Benj  A.  Willis,  T.  Bailey  Myers, 

Hunting  &  Hammond,  Hon.  O.  B.  Potter,  Hiram  Barney, 

Hawk  &  Wetherbee,  B.  F.  Watson,  Hon.  Wm.  H.  Wickham, 

Hitchcock  &  Darling,  Sam.  L.  M.  Barlow,  Benjamin  D.  Sillman. 


Messrs.  Vermilye,  Rolston,  Seligman,  Tappen,  Hillhouse  and  Stewart, 
whose  names  are  among  those  of  the  signers  of  the  communication  to  ex- 
Mayor  Edson,  addressed  a  letter  to  Mr.  Marsh  embodying  the  main  points 
presented  in  the  foregoing,  and  elaborating  its  arguments  in  favor  of  the 
New  Park  System.  This  letter  was  forwarded  among  the  mass  of  corres- 
pondence laid  before  the  Governor,  vhile  the  fate  of  the  bill  was  undecided. 


EMPHATIC    INDORSEMENT    BY    PROMINENT    CITIZENS. 

As  allusion  has  been  made  to  the  support  and  encouragement  which  the 
cause  of  the  New  Parks  received  from  well-known  citizens,  who  took  a 
strong  interest  in  its  suc3ess,  the  author  feels  that  this  history  of  the  move- 
ment would  not  be  complete  without  special  reference  to  the  correspondence 
which  constituted  one  of  its  most  interesting  as  well  as  one  of  its  most 
important  chapters. 

On  the  publication  of  the  report  to  the  Legislature  of  1884,  Mr.  Marsh 
and  the  author,  acting  on  behalf  of  the  Commission,  sent  copies  to  a  large 
number  of  well-known  citizens,  with  accompanying  letters  directing  their 
attention  to  the  array  of  facts  and  arguments  presented  therein,  and 
requesting  an  expression  of  their  views  "  on  a  matter  of  such  vital  import- 
ance to  the  well-being  of  our  people  and  the  best  interests  of  our  imperial 
city." 

The  replies,  which  were  numerous  and  voluminous,  warmly  approved  the 
report,  and  heartily  indorsed  the  action  of  the  Commission.  As  the  letters 
alone  would  fill  a  good-sized  volume,  the  following  extracts  will  suffice  to 
show  the  earnest  and  emphatic  manner  in  which  the  writers  responded  and 
their  cordial  indorsement  of  the  movement: 

President  Arthur. — I  have  not  yet  had  time  to  give  the  document  more 
than  a  hasty  exammation,  but  this  brief  inspection  has  suffl''ed  to  impress 
me  with  the  thoroughness  of  the  work  of  the  Commission  and  the  import- 
ance of  carrying  out  its  suggestions.  Trusting  that  your  labors  may  meet 
with  a  ready  re-ponse  from  the  Legislature,  I  am,  with  kind  regard. 

Hon.  O.  B.  Potter. — I  am  so  satisfied  that  the  additional  parks  recom- 
mended will  at  a  very  early  date  become  necessary  and  important  to  the 
health,  growth  and  attractiveness  of  that  great  metropolis,  that  I  am  will- 
ing my  estate  shall  be  subjected  to  the  taxation  it  will  have  to  bear  in 
order  that  these  parks  may  now  be  acquired.  I  believe  this  to  be  the 
general  sentiment  of  the  principal  property  owners  of   tha  city,  and  of 


THE  NEW  PARKS.  165 

men  of  all  classes  who  feel  a  deep  and  intelligent  interest  in  its  develop- 
ment, growth,  attractiveness  and  beauty  as  the  great  commercial 
metropolis  of  the  country.  I  know  there  are  a  few,  and  among  them 
our  present  Mayor,  who  do  not  think  the  acquisition  of  the  pirks  at 
present  desirable,  especially  in  view  of  the  large  indebtedness  of  the  city. 
Mayor  Edson  wa§  among  the  first  in  favor  of  the  Park  Commission,  and 
I  certainly  received  from  him  the  impression,  in  the  early  part  of  the 
movement,  that  he  was  entirely  favorable  to  it,  and  I  am  somewhat  at 
a  loss  to  understand -why  it  meets  with  his  opposition  now.  At  any  rate, 
I  am  quite  clear  that  those  equally  interested  with  himself  in  the  welfare 
of  the  city,  and  who  will  pay  a  much  larger  proportion  of  tbe  cost  of 
these  parks  than  he,  do  not  agfee  with  him  in  his  present  judgment. 

Hon.  W.  H.  Robertson. — No  one  familiar  with  that  part  of  the  city 
would  doubt  for  a  moment  the  wisc^om  ojf  the  Commission,  either  in  respect 
to  the  location  of  those  parks  or  to  the  amount  of  territory  appropriated 
for  them.  They  will  add  much  to  the  health  and  enjoyment  of  the  citizen, 
and  to  the  beauty  and  fame  of  the  city.  The  result  of  your  labors  will 
have,  I  trust,  the  unqualified  approval  of  the  Legislature.  Your  report 
will  well  repay  perusal.  It  contains,  considering  its  size,  fuller  and  more 
valuable  information  on  the  subject  of  parks  than  any  other  work  I  have 
ever  read. 

Hon.  S.  S.  Cox. — If  there  were  any  influence  which  I  could  exercise  at 
Albanv  to  induce  proper  legislation,  so  as  to  give  New  York  its  full 
breathing  apparatus  in  the  shape  of  parks,  I  should  be  very  happy. 

Ex  Judge  Noah  Davis.  —While  I  am  earnestly  in  favor  of  rigid  economy 
in  the  admini.-tration  of  our  municipal  affairs  and  would  guard  the  expen- 
diture of  public  money  by  the  strictest  rules,  yet  I  do  not  hesitate  to  say 
that  in  my  judgment  the  adoption  of  the  system  of  public  parks  proposed 
by  the  Commission  will  be  in  every  sense  a  judicious  and  economical  pro- 
ceeding. A  wise  prudence  dictates  that  it  should  be  done  without  delay. 
Both  the  property  and  the  money  required  for  its  purchase  are  as  cheap 
now  as  they  can  ever  be,  and  the  growing  wants  of  th=(oity  in  the  direction 
of  public  parks  can  never  be  more  advantageously  supplied. 

Stewart  Dean,  Esq. — Your  benign  project  will  be,  I  am  confident,  should 
the  wisdom  of  the  Lejjislature  put  it  through,  the  biggest  jump  New  York 
city  ever  took  towards  fittiug  herself  for  swaying  the  sceptre  of  ultimate 
domain  as  the  world's  metropolis.  Though  having  lived  in  your  city,  lam 
here  on  the  lovely  marge  of  Lake  Erie,  with  the  freshness  of  Heaven  on  the 
air,  and  the  long  stretches  of  blue  under  the  eye,  and  health  in  the  gale; 
and  I  wish  my  crowded  fellow-beings  on  the  other  edge  of  the  State  to  have 
something  of  the  same  blessings— to  accomplish  which  your  efforts  seem  so 
earnestly  bent.  I  hope  the  Legislature  will  commend  itself  to  the  grati- 
tude of  all  the  future  by  a  fiat  which  shall  speak  these  pleasure  grounds 
into  being. 

Rev.  Morgan  Dix,  D.  D. — That  the  cicy  of  New  York  is  very  far  behind 
the  other  great  cities  of  the  world  in  her  provision  for  the  health  and  happi- 
ness of  the  people  by  means  of  pleasure  grounds  and  parks  is,  unfortunately, 
too  well  known.  The  views  of  your  Commission  on  that  point  are  stated 
in  a  way  which  could  hardly  be  more  impressive;  while  their  recommenda- 
tions seem  to  me  to  be  eminently  wise  and  practical.  What  they  pnpose 
might,  indeed,  be  regarded  as  the  minimum;  nothing  less  should  bethought 
of;  and  they  are  right  in  urging  prompt,  or  rather  immediate,  action,  iu 
order  to  secure  inestimable  advantages  now  within  our  reach,  but  liable 
through  delay  to  be  lost  to  our  citizens  forever.  I  earne.-<tly  hope  that 
among  our  legislators  at  Albany  there  will  be  found  the  wi  dom,  the  fore- 
sight, the  statesmanship,  the  enlightened  public  soirir,,  nay,  the  common 
sense,  which,  if  properly  applied,  will  result  in  an  approval  of  the  recom- 
mendations of  this  admirable  and  exhaustive  report,  and  in  making 
provision  for  the  spae.iy  realizatit^n  of  tbe  project. 

Hon.  Wm  Djiod  -  I  have  received  and  read  the  report  of  the  Commis- 


166  THE  NEW  PARK  ;. 

sion  to  Locate  Lands  for  Parks,  which  you  so  kiadly  sent  m^,  and  I  was 
greatly  interested  in  its  contents,  which  are  so  plainly  the  result  of  thorough 
research  and  the  fullest  consideration  of  the  matter.  It  seems  to  me  that 
no  language  can  too  strongly  set  forth  the  absolute  necessity  of  these  parks 
to  afford  the  largest  amount  of  breathing  space  to  the  greatest  number  of 
people  at  the  least  cost.  But  now  is  the  time  to  secure  these  lands,  when 
the  cost  isprobably  at  the  minimum,  and  money  is  so  cheap.  Tho  authority 
to  purchase  should  be  given  by  the  present  Legislature  without  fail,  and  no 
means  should  be  neglected  to  bring  about  this  most  desirable  result. 

Stansbury  Norse,  Esq. — As  an  artist,  familiar  with  all  the  localities  men- 
tioned in  your  report,  I  can  understand  the  difficulties  you  have  had  to 
contend  with  and  have  surmounted,  and- 1  congratulate  you  upon  the 
judicious  selections  you  have  made,  and  the  picturesque  sights  deter- 
mined upon. 

Morris  K.  Jessup,  Esq. — From  my  standpoint,  the  necessity  of  an  increase 
of  our  park  area  is  so  apparent  and  so  great  as  hardly  to  need  the  advocacy 
of  a  single  person. 

Hon  Ernest  Hall. — I  do  not  think  that  anything  that  I  can  say  would 
add  any  weight  to  your  magnificent  and  comprehensive  report  in  regard  to 
the  parks  iu  the  annexed  district,  but  if  the  hearty  approbation  of  all 
owners  of  jjroperty  in  that  district  can  aid  you,  that  you  may  rest  assured 
you  have.  It  is  rightfully  considered  that  there  is  no  subject  of  such  vital 
importance  to  the  entire  city  of  New  York  as  this  one  in  regard  to  parks; 
itis  a  question  to  many  of  life  or  death  in  a  physical  sense,  and  the  death  rate 
of  the  city,  at  present  so  large,  must  increase  unless  places  can  be  provided 
now  for  free  air  for  the  poorer  classes.  The  work  which  your  Commission  has 
initiated  must  be  completed  at  once,  'ihe  people  having  obtained,  through 
your  report,  such  a  glimpse  of  Heaven,  will  never  rest  contented  with  the 
present  purgatory. 

John  E.  Parsons,  Esq. — I  have  some  right  to  an  opinion  upon  the  subject. 
1  was  brought  up  iu  the  lower  part  of  Westchester  County,  at  Rye,  and  all 
my  life  I  have  been  familiar  with  the  country  between  the  Connecticut  line 
and  the  Harlem  River.  It  is  all  beautiful.  From  my  father's  house  the 
water  view  extended  to  Sands  Point  in  one  direction  and  as  far  as  the  eye 
can  reach  in  the  other.  A  short  drive  reached  the  hill  tops,  from  which  the 
whole  line  of  the  Palisades  was  visible.  One  of  my  earliest  memories  is  of 
a  visit  to  a  friend  of  my  mothers,  Mrs.  Elisha  King,  whose  beautiful  place, 
wiih  Hunter's  Island,  the  finest  gentleman's  seat  that  I  ever  saw  in  this 
country,  you  seem  to  incorporate  in  your  Pelham  Park.  It  always  appeared 
to  me  that  the  beauty  of  TV  estchester  County  culminited  at  Pelham  on  the 
shore,  and  at  the  Lydig  property  on  the  Bronx.  Your  committee  must 
have  been  of  the  same  mind,  to  judge  from  the  fact  that  you  have  selected 
each  for  the  fcite  of  a  park.  I  still  drive  once  in  a  while  to  New  Rochelle 
and  lieyond.  Don't  delay  the  parks.  They  will  make  the  distance  seem 
only  half  as  great.     Let  me  thank  you  for  your  work. 

Everett  H.  Wheeler,  Esq  — Everything  that  makes  the  city  of  New 
Yoik  more  healtnful  and  mere  beautiful  will  attract  population,  increase 
taxable  values,  promote  the  comfort  and  the  morality  of  our  citizens. 
If  the  parks  which  your  Commi-sion  advocate  should  be  laid  out,  the 
value  of  the  whole  annexed  district  will  largely  increase.  The  owners  of 
property  there  will  thus  contribute  more  and  mora  to  the  public  treasury. 
This  will  be  easy  for  them,  because  the  improvements  you  propose  will 
make  their  land  desirable  for  residence  and  in  this  way,  before  the  bonds 
which  the  city  will  issue  to  pay  for  our  new  parks  shall  become  due,  the 
taxpayers  of  the  wards  north  of  the  Harlem  River  will  have  paid  for 
them,  principal  and  interest. 

Isaac  D.  Cole,  Esq  —I  have  been  very  much  interested  in  examining 
your  report  to  the  Legislature,  and  I  feel  that  your  enormous  undertaking, 
and  the  progress  which  has  thus  far  been  made,  will  have  a  successful 


THE  NEW  PARKS.  lOT 

issue;  also,   that  your  labors,   as   they    merit,   will  receive  the   sincerest 
thanks  of  your  fellow  citizens. 

Abijah  Curtiss,  Esq  —In  agreeing  most  fully  with  your  report  and  in 
your  views  oc  the  nec^-ssity  of  present  action  upon  the  same,  I  wish  also  to 
add  my  thanks  and  commdndation  for  the,  to  me,  faithful  manner  in  which 
your  work  has  been  done.  Having  a  most  conversant  knowledge  of  the 
lands  and  topography  covered  by  your  report,  1  find  nothing  to  suggest 
that  would  add  to  the  conclusions  you  have  arrived  at  in  regard  to  location 
of  the  proposed  parks. 

Gen.  W.  H.  Morris. — I  beg  to  offer  my  entire  approval  of  your  admir- 
able selection  of  sites.  The  arrangements  for  connecting  the  parks  in  the 
annexed  district  are  excellent. 

Professor  S.  IFa^er/ionse.— Certainly  the  State  of  New  York  will  not 
hesitate,  ia  view  of  the  urgent  needs  of  its  chief  city,  to  authorize  by  legis- 
lative action  the  acquisition  of  grounds  so  essential  to  the  health  and  recrea- 
tion of  its  citizens.  A  neglect  of  the  present  opportunity  may  forever 
defeat  an  admirable  system  of  public  improvements.  The  legi-lators  of 
New  York  are  too  sagacious  to  be  guilty  of  a  remissness  so  fatal  to  the  best 
interests  of  their  metropolis.  And  when  under  the  prompt  sanction  of  the 
legislature,  the  desired  tracts  have  been  secured,  the  municipal  council  of 
New  York  will  scarcely  be  able  to  find  better  methods  for  the  embellish- 
ment of  the  new  parks  than  those  embodied  in  the  excellent  recommenda- 
tions of  your  Commission. 

Jas.  F.  Sutton. — There  is  not,  nor  can  there  be,  anything  more  import- 
ant to  the  preheat  and  future  of  this  city  than  the  question  of  beautiful 
parks,  and  the  larger  and  the  more  there  are  of  thdm  the  better.  The 
more  a  people  of  a  great  city  can  get  of  nature  the  better  the  people  of 
that  city  will  be.  It  must,  indeed,  be  a  small  mind  that  would  oppose  this 
movement,  and  I  cannot  believe  tnere  is  any  opposition  to  it  by  the  people 
of  this  city. 

John  D.  Toivnsend. — It  has  often  occurred  to  me  that  our  city  from  its 
rapid  inci  ease  of  population  would  soon  require  more  breathing  places  for 
the  people,  and  I  rejoiced  when,  in  1SS3,  the  Legislature  passed  the  act  by 
whi(.n  your  Commission  could  be  appointed.  I  have  delayed  my  response 
to  your  letter  until  I  could  get  an  opportunity  of  properly  inspecting  the 
subject,  and  now  that  I  have  done  so,  1  take  pleasure  in  adding  my  voice 
to  the  rest  that  the  committee  has  performed  its  duty  with  extraordinary 
care  and  discretion. 

J.  M  Hard,  £"80^.— Please  add  my  name  to  the  many'you>lready  have, 
in  emphatic  approval  of  the  proposed  plan. 

Austin  Corbin. — As  an  individual  citizen,  interested  as  al'l  should  be,  in 
anyihiug  aflcciing  the  common  weal,  I  regard  the  question  of  providing  an 
increased  number  of  parks  as  of  paramount  iiupjrtxace  to  a  city  like  New 
York.  It  has  demonstrated  such  a  marvelous  capacity  for  growth,  it  needs 
a  generous  provision  in  the  way  of  breathing  grounds,  to  meet  the  wants 
ot  tuture  geueraiions — a  necessity  which  I  ihiuk  few  of  our  citizens  appre- 
ciate as  it  deserves.  Your  views  upon  this  question  meet  my  cordial  con- 
currence, and  the  only  criticism  I  have  to  m^ike  is  that  you  have  not  pro- 
vided half  the  space  that  ought  to  be  provided  for  this  purpose.  Increased 
taxation  will  more  than  pay  the  interest  upon  such  acquisitions,  but  if  u 
should  not  the  city  will  be  tully  compensated  for  the  money  so  expended, 
in  the  saving  of  health  and  life. 

Jas.  M.  Constable,  Esq.— The  circular  of  the  Commission  and  also  the 
repurts  in  relation  to  tue  system  of  park  accommodation  for  the  city  has 
been  received,  and  I  have  read  the  same  with  much  interest.  I  heartily 
approve  of  the  plan  to  give  the  people  more  breathing  room. 

Hon.  John  C.  Develin.—l  am  in  entire  sympathy  with  the  movement  for 
increased  park  area,  and  cannot  write  in  too  high  terms  of  the  labor,  intel- 
ligence and  judgment  devoted  and  displayed  by  the  Commissioners  to  and 


168  THE  NEW  PARKS. 

in  the  selection  of  sites.  New  Tork  is  nowhere  so  deficient  as  in  the 
paucity  of  parks 

Hon.  JVm  E.  Dodge. — It  is  a  great  encouragement  to  all  thoughtful  men 
to  feel  that  the  authorities  are  willing  to  look  forward  and  to  provide  for 
the  future  needs  of  tliis  great  city,  while  land  can  be  procured  and  plans 
perfected  wisely. 

D.  Willis  James,  Esq.— 1  take  great  pleasure  in  saying  that  I  am  most 
heartily  in  favor  of  prompt  mea^-ures  being  taken  to  secure  in  the  annexed 
district  a  liberal  amouotof  landi  for  public  parks,  believing  them  to  be  a 
necessity  for  all  great  cities.  I  believe  tha  lands  should  be  secured  at  once, 
while  it  can  be  done  at  a  comparatively  modes:;  c  jst;  that  aay  delay  is  both 
expansive  and  hazardous.  No  one  at  all  familiar  with  sanitary  science  can  fail 
to  recogniz3  that  parks,  open  places,  breatbiug  spots  are  a  necessity  in  any 
great  city,  and  alsj  that  while  they  are  a  necessity  they  are  the  chief 
beauty  and  attraction  any  city  can  possess.  I  sincerely  hope  New  York 
will  be  wise  enough  to  secure  suitable  sites  in  the  annexed  district  and 
secure  ample  space.  No  one  familiar  with  our  city  can  fail  to  regret  that 
the  wise  foresight  of  De  Wict  Clinton,  in  laying  out  ample  open  spaces, 
failed  of  being  carriei  out,  and  as  a  result,  to  day  New  Yoik  is  suffering, 
and  must  go  on  to  suffer  iu  tha  future  until  suitable  measures  are  taken  to 
remedy,  as  far  as  possible,  the  dire  calamity.  In  many  parts  of  our  over- 
crowdei  city — notably  the  tenement-house  districts— the  necessit''  now 
exists  for  providing  open  spaces  for  the  health  and  well-being  of  our  people. 
A  wise  statesmanship  must  provide  these,  even  though  the  expense  be 
great;  but  so  costly  a  blunder  should  warnusnotto  repeat  it  ia  theannexed 
district,  soon  to  be  a  thickly  populated  city;  but  to  act  at  once  and  secure 
ample  lands  for  open  spaces  while  it  can  be  done  at  a  comparatively 
moderate  expense. 

Hon.  D.  McMahon. — Some  years  since  I  attended  before  Mayor  Grace 
an  1  spDke  decidedly  against  propos-ed  new  parks,  but  now  frankly  admit 
mys'^lf  converted  to  ycur  suggestions.  lam  aware  that  the  city  south  of 
the  Harlem  is  not  embraced  within  the  limi's  of  your  powers  as  fixed  by 
the  law  creating  your  Commission,  but  some  provision  should  be  made 
hereafter  for  small  downtown  paiks,  constructed  in  pestilential  portions 
of  the  city,  which  last  would  be  for  the  very  poor  who  cannot  afford  the 
time  nor  money  for  the  fresh  air  of  tha  suburbs.  If  savpral  blocks  in  the 
4th,  7th,  14th,  llth  and  lUth  Wards  were  separately  taken,  the  houses  on 
them  demolished,  open  air  spaces  created,  laid  ut  in  green  gras?,  the  sani- 
tary ondition  of  the  city  would  thereby  be  improved.  No  better  donation 
to  their  fellow-citizans  of  the  "toilers"  cmld  be  given  by  our  rich  men 
than  to  buy  up  in  the  tenement  district  several  squares  of  buildings, 
demolish  the  vile,  polluted,  pestilent,  reeking  structures  on  them,  donate 
one  of  them  to  the  public,  laying  same  out  in  an  open  space  and  erect 
around  same  improved  tenements  for  the  very  poor.  As  a  business  specu- 
lation it  would  pay;  as  a  b-^nevolenc  enterprise  the  donors  would  stand  on 
the  same  place  as  Cooper,  Lenox,  et  id  omne  genus. 

W.  K  Thorn,  Esq. — I  can  only  say  I  entirely  approve  of  the  purchases 
an  1  should  favor  au  inciease  of  the  number  of  parns  above  jour  sugges- 
tions, as  among  the  very  best  investments  the  city  could  m^k^.  As  soon  as 
parks  are  located,  the  property  surrounding  and  near  them  will  be  selected 
as  residences,  and  so  their  value  be  much  enhanced  and  the  taxable  prop- 
erty of  the  city  thereby  very  much  iacreased  in  value. 

Rev.  Howard  Crosby.— I  most  fully  concur  with  all  your  views,  and  can- 
not but  believe  that  the  whole  city  will  indorse  your  labors,  and  the  Legis- 
lature give  efficiency  to  your  plans.  These  parks  must  be  secured  now,  as 
you  ably  argue,  and  they  cannot  be  more  wisely  located  than  they  have 
been  by  you.  Your  treatment  of  the  pecuniary  aspect  of  the  question  is 
forcible  and  true. 

H  G.  Marquand,  Esq — I  cannot  see  how  any  one  having  interest  in  the 
welfare,  present  and  future,  of  this  city,  can  take  any  other  view  or  be  led 


THE  NEW"   PARKS.  169 

by  any  proper  motive  to  oppose  the  movement  to  secure  them  now.  I 
cheerfully  approve  of  your  efforts  and  wish  you  success. 

Mesars.  H  B.  Claflin  and  W.  H.  Dunn. — If  it  is  any  encouragement  for 
you  to  know  tbac  v\e  beardly  approve  the  work  of  the  Commission,  we  are 
glad  indeed  so  to  advise  you,  aiid  we  siucerely  trust  that  you  will  be  able  to 
bring  to  a  satisfactory  conclusion  your  effort  to  provide  for  the  future  wel- 
fare of  our  great  and  growing  city,  and  if  in  any  wise  we  can  assist  you, 
we  shall  be  glad  to  have  you  command  us. 

General  Fremont. — Regarding  the  city  as  the  exponent  of  the  wonderful 
growth  of  the  country  which  is  its  background,  and  with  which  as  well  as 
the  growth  of  the  city  itself  I  have  been  familiar  for  years,  it  is  with  a 
positive  pleasure  that  I  look  upon  the  wise  preparations  which  you  are 
making  to  render  it  worthy  and  fit  for  the  commanding  place  which  it  is  to 
occupy  in  the  future. 

T.  B.  Coddington,  Esq. — I  am  in  hearty  sympathy  and  accord  with  the 
movement.  Looking  to  the  present  and  the  future  growth  of  the  city,  I 
believe  that  its  sanitary  welfare  will  be  best  promote  1,  and  the  intelligence, 
taste  and  morals  of  the  people  fostered  by  an  adequate  provision  in  this 
direction. 

D.  Connolly.  Esq. — The  report  is  highly  interesting,  and  I  trust  it  will 
impress  the  Legislature  with  the  importance  of  taking  action  on  the  sub- 
ject of  providing  parks  in  that  section  as  soon  as  possible.  They  will  be 
greatly  needed,  and  provision  for  them  cannot  be  made  too  soon.  New 
York  will  gain  many  millions  of  dollars,  and  much  sanitary  advantage  as 
well,  by  prompt  attention  to  this  important  subject.  The  information 
furnished  in  this  report  is  valuable  and  should  be  carefully  studied. 


Col.  R.  M.  Gallaway.— In  addition  to  the  letters,  from  which  the  fore- 
going extracts  are  taken,  Vice-fresident  Gallaway,  of  the  Manhattan  Ele- 
vated Railway,  addressed  a  communication  to  .the  Governor,  while  he  had 
the  bill  under  consideration.  After  a  reference  to  the  effect  of  parks  in  the 
enhancement  of  the  surrounding  property,  and  his  intimate  knowledge  of 
the  whole  territory  to  a  distance  of  twenty-five  miles  around  New  York, 
acquired  while  engaged  in  the  work  of  surveying,  Col.  Gallaway  expressed 
his  belief  that  no  land  within  such  easy  reach  (through  the  facilities 
afforded  by  the  present  system  of  rapid  transit)  can  be  found  so  well 
suited  for  public  parks,  considered  in  relation  to  adaptability,  accessibility 
and  economy. 

*'  This,"  said  he,  "  is  true  of  the  Van  Cortlandt  and  the  Bronx  parks,  and, 
in  a  special  degree,  of  the  Pelham  Bay  Park,  which  has  the  additional  advan- 
tage of  a  front  upon  the  Sound,  that  cannot  fail  to  make  it  one  of  the  most 
attractive  of  our  public  pleasure  grounds,  particularly  for  the  great  bod/ 
of  our  working  people,  whose  various  traJe  and  benevolent  societies,  in 
addition  to  the  athletic  clubs,  will  throng  it  daily  through  the  summer 
season.  I  would  say,  right  here,  that  this  is  the  time  to  buy  this  seaside 
park  while  it  is  outside  the  limits  of  the  city,  and  before  it  becomes  a  part 
of  New  York,  for  the  moment  it  is  annexed  the  property  cannot  be  had  for 
treble,  or  even  quadruple  its  present  price.  Better  for  the  city  to  buy  grass 
lots  now  than  lots  with  improvements  on  them  hereafter.  Then  there  would 
not  be  money  enough  to  pay  for  them.  The  land  which  now  can  be  bought 
for  eight  millions  could  not  be  bought  ten  years  hence  for  fifty. 

'*  To-day  there  are  over  a  million  and  a-half  of  people  in  New  York,  and 
the  centre  of  population  is  moving  so  rapidly  northward  that  ere  many 
years  it  shall  have  reached  the  Harlem  River.  That  river,  uniting  as  it 
does  the  Hudson  and  the  East  Rivers,  must,  when  the  present  system  of 
improvement  shall  have  been  completed,  form  an  important  artery  of 
commerce,  its  shores  lined  by  storehouses,  and  its  docks  crowded  by  vessels 


170  THE  NEW   PARKS. 

of  all  kinds.  A  large  part  of  the  commercial  business  of  the  city  will  then 
be  concentrated  at  this  point.  It  requires  no  especial  foresight  to  predict 
the  future  of  this  section  of  the  meiropjlis,  which,  as  I  have  said,  will  be  a 
great  city  in  itself.  During  mis  generation  New  York  will  have  5,(^00,000 
of  inhabitants,  and  at  its  present  rate  of  increase,  in  half  a  century  it  will 
have  10,0(10,000— more  than  double  the  population  of  London.  Looking  at 
its  rapid  growth  and  its  future  prospects  I  cannot  help  thinking  that  the 
Commission  have  actually  fallen  short  in  their  calculation  of  the  park  area 
that  will  be  needed.  But  if  they  have  not,  and  if  they  have  taken  more 
than  will  be  required,  it  is  a  difficulty  that  can  be  easily  remedied  and  with 
advantage  to  the  city  by  the  sale  of  a  few  hundred  acres,  which  can  be 
done  at  such  an  advance  as  will  more  than  pay  the  cost  of  the  whole,  and 
leave  a  good  profit  to  the  city. 

"  As  to  t lie  question  of  accessibility.  I  can  speak,  as  you  are  aware,  from 
practical  experience  and  an  intimate  knowledge  of  the  subject.  The  facili- 
ties of  approach  have  been  so  largely  increased  within  a  few  years  as  to  render 
all  these  parks  easily  accessible  to  the  whole  pjputation  of  the  city  both  by 
rail  and  steamboat.  A  line  drawn  due  east  and  west  strikes  the  two  great 
parks— one  on  the  Hudson  and  the  other  on  the  Sound— Van  Cortlandt  and 
Pelham  Bay,  both  of  which  are  in  communication  with  all  sections  of  the 
city  by  rail  and  the  latter  by  steamboat  as  well.  By  i-apid  transit  the 
Van  Cortlandt  Park  can  be  reached  in  thirty  minutes  from  Forty- second 
street  and  in  forty-five  minutes  from  the  Battery,  the  extreme  southern  limit 
of  the  city.  When  the  Second  Avenue  Bridge,  which  is  now  in  process  of 
construction,  is  completed,  and  the  connection  on  both  sides  is  thus  effected 
between  the  Elevated  and  the  Portchester  and  the  Harlem  Railroad,  which 
runs  through  Pelham  Bay  Park,  it  can  be  reached  within  twenty  minutes 
from  the  centre  of  population.  This  railroad  connection  will  be  complete 
within  a  year — certainly  before  the  proceedings  for  the  acquisition  of  the 
site  of  this  park  can  be  perfected." 


Hon.  W.  W.  Niles. — Besides  the  active  personal  services  rendered  by  Mr. 
Niles,  who,  it  should  be  stated,  was  present  on  the  eventful  night  when  the 
bill  passed  the  Senate  by  a  vote  of  twenty-one  to  two,  that  influential  mem- 
ber of  the  New  York  Park  Association  and  of  the  Commission  appointed 
under  the  act  of  1883,  addressed  a  forcible  and  convincing  letter,  dated 
March  29,  1886,  to  a  large  number  of  his  friends  in  the  Senate  and  Assembly. 

"I  notice,"  said  Mr.  Niles  in  this  communication,  "an  elf ort  to  repeal, 
or  modify  the  act  known  as  the  '  New  Parks  bill.'  None  of  us  have  any 
light  for  our  guidance  except  the  light  of  the  past.  I  submit,  therefore,  a 
few  facts  in  regard  to  this  measure,  and  they  shall  be  very  few  and  briefly 
stated,  for  life,  and  especially  official  life,  is  too  active  and  earnest  to  be 
wasted  upon  rhetoric."  After  referring  somewhat  in  detail  to  the  history 
of  the  park  movement  Mr.  Niles  alluded  to  the  coiiflicr,  precipitated  by 
ex-Mayor  Grace  and  the  signal  defeat  of  his  scheme,  cum  la. ling  as  follows: 

"  One  word  only  by  way  of  prophecy:  the  lands  selected  are  almost  with- 
out improvement.  Within  five  years  buildings  would  otherwise  have  been 
erected  on  them  and  improvements  made  which  would  each  represent 
with  an  acre,  or  half  acre,  the  cost  of  ten  to  fifty  acres  of  the  land  at 
present;  and  the  extension  of  the  surface  railroads  and  the  Rapid  Transit 
syttem  and  other  pending  irrprovements,  would  in  some  cases  double  and 
quadruple  the  cose  of  the  land.  With  this  past  and  with  this  probable 
luture,  it  is  submitted  whether  it  is  wise  for  the  present  Legislature  to  undo 
the  work  so  carefully,  so  patiently,  and  after  such  earnest  and  long  con- 
tinued labor,  accomplished,  and  for  the  completion  of  which  a  large  propor- 
tion of  the  expense  and  liability  has  already  been  inctured." 


THE  NEW  PARKS.  171 


PETITION  TO  THE  LEGISLATURE  AND  THE  GOVERNOR  IN 
FAVOR  OF  THE  NEW  PARKS,  AND  ASKING  THAT  THE 
BILL  BE  PASSED  AND  SIGNED. 

The  following  petition  was  signed  by  about  seven  thousand  persons, 
representing  every  trade  and  profession. 

In  addition  to  this  petition  there  were  separate  petitions  signed  by 
nearly  one  hundred  of  the  first  artists  of  the  city,  who  urged  the  Governor 
to  approve  the  bill,  on  the  ground  that  the  lands  selected  were  natural 
parks,  and  especially  on  account  of  the  beautiful  and  picturesque  charac- 
ter of  their  scenery. 

Separate  petitions  were  also  signed  by  a  large  number  of  leading  physi- 
cians, setting  forth  the  sanitary  benefits  which  the  whole  people  would 
derive  from  the  new  parks. 

FREE  PARKS  FOR  THE  PEOPLE. 


To     OXTR     RiPRKSKNTATIVKS     IN    THE     SENiTB     AND     ASSBUBLY     OF    THE    StATK    OF 

New  York. 

The  People  of  the  City  of  New  York  demand  more  Parks. 
They  Want  Free  Playgrounds.    It  is  a  Necessity. 

The  Parks  recommended  by  the  Commission  appointed  under  the  act  of  the 
Legislature  of  1883,  have  been  wisely  chosen,  and  we  heartily  approve  of  all  of 
them  in  respect  to  "location,  extent,  mode  of  payment,  and  method  of  acquiring 
title." 

There  can  be  no  better  financial  undertaking  for  a  large  and  growing  city  than 
the  purchase  of  park  sites. 

They  will  co;t  the  city  nothing,  but,  on  the  contrary,  will  be  a  source  of  great 
profit.    The  experience  of  other  cities  proves  this. 

The  Central  Park  has  not  only  repaid  all  its  cost,  but  paid  into  the  Treasury  of 
the  City  Seventeen  Millions  of  Dollars,  and  left  the  city  the  owner  in  fee  free 
from  all  cost,  of  its  864  acres,  now  worth  Two  Hundred  Millions  op  Dollars. 

We  are  convinced  that  similar  results  will  follow  from  the  parks  laid  out  by 
the  Commission. 

Tne  Cen'  ral  Park,  for  the  following  reasons,  has  ceased  to  be,  if  it  ever  was,  a 
park  for  the  people: 

They  are  not  permitted  to  walk  or  play  upon  the  grass,  but  are  confined  to  its 
dusty  roads; 

The  lawns  and  meadows  are  for  sheep  and  not  for  the  people; 

It  is  kept  exclusive,  like  the  baronial  estates  of  European  lords; 

But  were  it  all  we  could  wish,  it  must  soon  .^ive  way  to  the  necessities  of 
trade  and  travel  between  the  east  and  west  sides. 

Ample  space  is  necessary  for  the  proper  training  of  our  citizen  soldiers  and 
for  the  athletic  sports  and  exercises  of  our  youth. 

Such  spaces  are  specially  provided  for  in  the  great  parks  of  Europe.  We 
have  none. 

The  death  rate  in  New  York  is  larger  than  that  of  the  other  great  centres  of 
population,  and  must  go  on  to  Increase  unl  *e8  remedied. 


173  THE  NEW  PARKS. 

In  one  ward  alone,  of  half  a  square  mile,  there  are  twelve  thousand  more 
inhabitants  than  in  the  whole  city  of  Albany. 

In  one  ward  of  one-sixth  of  a  squire  mile  there  are  five  thousand  more  per- 
sons than  in  Hartford,  the  capital  of  Connecticut. 

In  some  parts  of  five  or  six  w  ards  the  populition  is  packed  at  the  rate  of  one- 
thousand  to  an  acre,  and  there  is  very  little  more  ground  space  allowed  to  the 
living  than  is  allotted  to  the  dead. 

Must  this  go  on? 

New  York  is  behind  the  world  In  park  area. 

Even  with  Central  Park,  New  York  has  less  than  a  thousand  acres  (without 
its  reservoirs)  of  plsasu'e  grounds,  against 

One  Hundred  and  Seventy-two   Thousand  Acres  belonging  to  Paris. 

Twfuty-two  Thousand  to  London. 

Eight  Thotisand  to  Vienna. 

Five  Tlwitsand  to  Berlin 

Three  Thousand  to  Philadelphia. 

Three  Thousand  to  Chicago. 

Over  Tico  Thousand  to  St.  Louis,  and 

Over  Two  Thotisand  to  Boston. 

Other  cities  are  now  increasing  their  park  areas,  London  having  gust  added 
to  its  fifteen  thousand  acres  seven  thousand  more,  and  these  are  outside  of 
her  boundaries;  and  Soston  has  within  three  years  increased  her  area  with  an 
additional  nineteen  hundred  acres. 

All  the  parks  and  parkways  must  be  secured  now  before  the  growth  of  pop- 
ulation and  tne  advance  of  property  values  shall  make  any  of  them  costly; 
while  money  is  cheap  and  before  these  natural  parks  are  lost  to  us  forever. 

The  woods,  the  growth  of  centuries,  unless  secured  now  must  soon  give  place 
to  bricks  and  mortar. 

These  parks  are  more  accessible  by  road,  by  rail  and  by  water  than  the  Can. 
tral  Park  when  it  was  laid  out. 

We  don't  want  expensive  parks  laid  out  by  landscape  gardeners,  but  parks 
made  by  nature. 

■We  must  have  not  only  inland  parks,  with  meadows  and  woods,  but  the  grand 
one  laid  out  on  the  Sound,  with  its  miles  of  beach,  its  pure  and  cooling  waves, 
where  we  and  our  children  can  bathe  and  row  and  fish,  and  be  free  to  enjoy 
ourselves  in  its  health-giving  air  and  waters. 

By  the  inevitable  law  of  the  past  it  is  proved  that  the  population  of  New 
York  city  will  in  seventeen  years  be  three  millions. 

These  parks  would  not  alone  benefit  the  city— destined  to  be  the  greatest  in 
the  world— and  this  grand  Empire  State,  but  the  whole  coimtry. 


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23d  and  24th  Ward  Property  a  Specialty, 


BY 


JAIES  L,  WELLS, 

Auctioneer  S"  Broker, 


59  LIBERTY  STREET, 
NEW   YORK. 


.1.  THOMAS  STEARNS.  C.  A.  BERRIAN. 

J.  Thomas  Stearns, 

Auctioneer,  Real  Estate  Broker 
and  Appraiser. 

Member  of  the  Real  Estate  Exchange  and   Auction    Room,  (Limited.) 

No.  59  Liberty  Street,  N.  Y. 


Personal  attention  given  to  Auction  Sales 
of  Real  Estate  at  the  Exchange,  or  on  the 
premises.      Legal  Sales  carefully  conducted. 

Subdivision  of  Large  Tracts 

into  Villa  Sites  or  City  Lots,  and  disposing  of 
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233  aM  2411 M  ProBfirty  a  SpclaltF. 


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Member  of  Real  Estate  Exchange  and  Auction  Rooms  (Limited). 
OFFICES  OF 

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AND 

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153  BROADWAY. 

Branch  Office,  278  WEST   125th  STREET. 


WASHINGTON  REPRESENTATIVES  : 
HEISKELL  &  McLERAN,  1008  F.  Street,  N.  W. 

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PROPERTY  RENTED. 

RENTS   COLLECTED. 

LOANS    NEGOTIATED. 

INSURANCE  PLACED. 


Telephone,  Main  Office,  "JOHN  788."   Branch  Office,  "177  HARLEM." 


Specialty  made  of  procuring  Builders'  Loans — 
Money  loaned  on  Bond  and  Mortgage  at  4,  5  and 
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Security  in  any  amount  if  required. 


IMPORTANT 

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Manufacturers,  Builders  and  Investors. 


THE 


Offers  for  Sale  on  easy  terms,  very  choice 

East  River  Water  Fronts, 

lying  between  132d  and  188th  Sts.,  on  deep  water, 
for  factories,  lumber  and  stone  yards,  -etc.  Horse 
ears  running  to  foot  of  E.  138th  Street.  Branches 
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improvement   and   investment,  on,  and  adjacent  to, 
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THE  RECORDED  GUIDE. 

ESTABLISHED  MARCH  21st,  1868, 

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The  Great  Real  Estate,  Building  and  General 
Business  Paper. 

PUBLISHED  EVERY  SATURDAY. 

Besides  its  interesting  editorial  columns,  it  containir  the  following 
STATISTICAL    CONTENTS. 


Sales  of  the  Week. 

New  York  Conveyances. 

Kings  County  Conveyances. 

Westchester  County  Conveyances. 

New  York  Mortgages. 

Kings  County  Mortgages. 

Assignments  Mortgages,  New  York. 

Assignments  Mortgages,  Kings  County. 

Pro.iected  Buildings,  New  York. 

Projected  Buildings,  Kings  County. 

.Mterations  of  Buildings,  New  York.  '•    Building  Material  Market  and  Quotations 

Business  Failures. 

Satisfied  Judgments,  New  York. 

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New  Jersey  Cons..  Mortgages,  etc. 


Mechanics'  Liens,  New  York, 
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All  General  News  about  Real  Estate. 
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Recorded  Leases. 


Alterations  of  Buildings,  Kings  Count.v. 
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The  RECORD  A]V»  OUIDE  is  continually  referred  to 
by  thousands  of  people  to  whom  its  statistical  tables  are  invaluable. 
Its  advertising  columns  are  daily  consulted  for  advertisements  of  all 
kinds  of  material  used  in  the  construction  and  adornment  of  buildings 
required  by  its  readers.     It  is  therefore 

A  FIRST  CLASS  ADVERTISIN&  MEDIO! 

for  those  who  have  such  materials  to  put  upon  the  market. 

Copies  of  the  paper  and  terms  of  advertisement  can  be  obtained 
from  the  Publisher, 

191  Broadway,  New  York. 


HENRY  C.  MAPES. 


JOHN  S.  MAPES. 


H.  C.  MAPES  &  CO. 

AUCTIONEERS, 

M  Estate  aiii  liisiiraM  Mm, 

REAL    ESTATE 

BOUGHT,  SOLD  AND  EXCHANGED. 


Farms  and  Plots  sulD-dmded  and  sold  at 
Auction  on  the  Premises, 

—  OR  AT  THE  — 

REAL  ESTATE  EXCHANGE, 

59  Liberty  Street. 

Will  condnct  sales  of  Household  Furniture 
at  residences. 

59  Liberty  Street,  New  York  City. 

BRANCH    OFiriCK^', 
198G  Main  St.,  West  Farms.  Main  St..  West  Cbester. 


GEO    H.    SCOTT.  SINCLAIR   .MYERS. 

SCOTT  &  MYERS, 

EEAI  ESTATE, 

Auctioneers,  Brokers,  Agents  and  Appraisers. 

Loans  on  Bond  and  Mortgage. 
140   to    146   BROADWAY, 

Cor.  Liberty  Street,  New  York. 

Members  of  the  Real  Estate  Exchange  and  Auction  Room. 

Pai'ticulcir  attention  paid  to  the  sale  of 

Property  in  the  23d  and  24th  Wards. 


Large  tracts  divided  and  sold  in 
single  lots  and  plots,  either  at  auc- 
tion or  private  sale. 


36 


THE  LIBRARY 
UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA 

Santa  Barbara 


THIS  BOOK  IS  DUE  ON  THE  LAST  DATE 
STAMPED  BELOW.  - 


Series  9482 


IlllSliSiliiiiiiiiiir'''*"'''"^ 
A     000  559  474 


Geo.  R.  Read, 

Real  Estate, 


No.   9   PINE   STREET, 


(ASTOR  BUILDING) 


isTE'Vsr  "X'oe.ik:. 


A 


